Naruto: Rinnegan Jinchuriki
by Kurama no Kyubi
Summary: When Sasuke was cut down by Haku right in front of Naruto, said boy awakened a legandary power, the Rinnegan.
1. Chapter 1

**Naruto: Rinnegan Jinchuriki**

**A/N: I got the idea for this fic when I read a Naruto/Rinnegan fic, called Naruto: Jinchuriki of the six paths by X009, so some things at the beginning might be similar. Also Naruto will have another name for the Rinnegan techniques Almighty push and universal pull, but I don't know what he can call them so I would like a few suggestions.**

"Rinnegan." Normal speech

'_Rinnegan._' Normal thought

"**Rinnegan." Biju speech**

'_**Rinnegan.' **_**Biju thought**

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto, if I did, I would be rich.

Prologue

Uzumaki Naruto looked up from where he was, only to see his rival, Uchiha Sasuke having taken the hit for him. As Sasuke looked over his shoulder, Naruto noticed the senbon needles that went into his neck.

"You alright, you dope?" Sasuke said.

"Why did you do it Sasuke, why?" Naruto asked.

"I hated you."

"Then why?"

"I don't know, my body just moved on its own." Sasuke said before he fell backwards and Naruto cached him.

"So I guess this is it. My brother, I never got to kill him." Where Sasuke's last words before he drifted of, into the world of unconsciousness.

Haku only watched the seen in front of him from one of his ice mirrors, preparing to kill Naruto as well, but then as Naruto looked up, Haku noticed something '_What the…a Dojutsu? I thought Konoha only had two Dojutsus. Plus I've never heard of any with this description.'_

Naruto had indeed unlocked a Dojutsu. His previously cerulean blue eyes were now purple with four rings like a ripple pattern that were centered on the pupil.

Naruto looked at Haku and his eyes suddenly widened as a shockwave shot out in every direction and completely shattered all of Haku's ice mirrors.

Haku was sent skidding backwards and he threw several senbon at Naruto, but they just hit an invisible barrier as Naruto raised his right arm and Haku was suddenly pulled in by an unknown force.

Just as Haku got closer to Naruto, the young Jinchuriki clenched his fist and punched Haku so hard that the Hyoton user was sent flying back.

Haku landed with his back on the ground and as he raised himself up, his mask fell of and just as Naruto was about to deliver the final strike he recognized Haku's face and stopped just in time as he returned to the world of the conscious.

"You…you're the guy from…" Naruto said. All that had happened had just been a blur to him. He noticed how his vision had changed, everything was now black with white outlines and he could even see the chakra coursing through his body.

"Why did you stop?" Haku asked "I killed one of your precious friends, why can't you kill me?"

Naruto looked back at where Sasuke was still lying and punched Haku, though the punch was only strong enough to knock Haku down on his back.

Haku then began getting up on his feet as he said "What happened to that power? You can't kill me like that." He wiped away some blood that was coming down from his mouth before he continued "To show mercy to those who stand against your master is a betrayal to your life's purpose. What use are you to anyone then? Your life has no meaning."

"Well speak for yourself."

"I am speaking for myself. I am no longer of any use to Zabuza-sama."

"Why would you devote yourself to someone like that? Someone who works for scum like Gato has no honor." Naruto shouted, unable to understand why Haku would give his life for someone like Zabuza.

"There were once others who mattered to me, my father and my mother." Haku began "I was born in the Land of Water, in a small village heavy with snow. My parents were farmers and very poor, our life was hard but we were happy, but then everything changed. Because of something that happened long before I was even born."

"What do you mean? What happened?"

"It's in the blood." Was Haku's reply.

"Blood?"

"My father killed my mother and almost killed me." Haku said to Naruto's shock. "After years of suffering civil wars, the people of my land came to fear and hate anyone who carried a Kekkei Genkai."

"Kekkei Genkai?"

"It's special powers or jutsu passed on through certain clans, passed down from generation to generation. The clans were exploited for all sorts of battles because of their powers and were much feared. Once the wars were over, it was feared their presence would only bring more war. So after the wars were over, they hid their abilities, knowing that discovery would mean death. If you were to search the memories of that boy or your clan, you would probably find this to."

"My clan?" Naruto asked

"Have you noticed a change in your vision? You seem to have a Dojutsu, like that boy's." Haku said and Naruto's purple eyes widened, now understanding the change in his sight. Haku then went on to explain how his mother had hidden her bloodline and married a farmer, but because of him they were discovered. His father then killed his mother, before he instinctually defended himself, killing his father and those who were helping him in the process. How he had lost his purpose and that no one wanted his. That Zabuza was the first to acknowledge him.

"I'm no longer useful as a tool to Zabuza-sama. Naruto… I want you… to kill me."

Naruto just stood there, shocked at the boy's request.

"What are you waiting for? Go on, kill me." Haku said

"There's really no other way?" Naruto asked as Haku shook his head.

Naruto then drew a kunai and charged forward, but just before he reached the hyoton user, Haku felt that something was wrong and in burst of speed he vanished.

Naruto looked around for him and thanks to his Dojutsu which enabled him to see through the mist, he found Haku appearing just in front of Zabuza and Kakashi was running towards both them with his right hand, being covered in lightning.

"Stop." Naruto yelled as he held out his arm, hoping that by some miracle Kakashi would stop charging at the two missing-nins. And the miracle happened when a shockwave shot forth from the young Jinchuriki and the three ninjas were swept of their feet. Naruto's eyes widened, wondering if he had done that, and if so, how.

"What the hell." Zabuza said as he got to his feet.

Just then everyone heard voice from behind Tazuna and Sakura "Well, Well, look at what we have here." Everyone looked towards the voice to see Gato and a large group of thugs.

Apparently it seemed that, since Gato thought that Zabuza was too expensive, he decided to wait till the Shinobi had worn each other out and then have his thugs take down all of them.

"Well, Kakashi, it would seem our fight is at an end." Zabuza said as Sakura and Tazuna ran past them.

"Yeah, I suppose you're right." Kakashi replied in a crouch. He noticed Naruto's eyes but said nothing. At first, he thought they may have been an effect of the Kyubi's chakra, but he quickly dismissed that thought. He decided it would be best to talk about that later.

"Naruto." Sakura said as she and Tazuna approached the blonde genin "Where's Sasuke-kun?"

"Sakura-Chan…" Naruto started, but he was cut off by Haku "He's fine. In order to remove him from the battle, I put him in a death-like state as I did for Zabuza-sama earlier. He'll wake up in a few minutes."

"You're still to kind-hearted Haku, I've told you countless times that you should always finish your opponents off…though I suppose for once it paid off." Zabuza said.

"Enough of this. take them down." Gato said and the thugs ran towards the six shinobi and one civilian.

Naruto created five Kage Bunshins, much to the thugs shock. Though that fear was quickly relieved as the Bunshins started to act confused as though they couldn't get their bearings and soon, they dispelled, leaving a slightly dazed Naruto.

The thugs continued their charge, but stopped when the image of a demon suddenly appeared behind Zabuza.

Zabuza then charged at them and they started to run and in the end, only Gato was standing there.

Apparently, the thugs had decided that their lives was more valuable than money, since they didn't listen to Gato when he tried to get them to stay by offering them a million ryo if they could kill Zabuza.

As Zabuza approached his former employer, he swung his sword, Kubikiribocho and Gato's had fell to the ground.

While this happened, Sasuke finally woke up, much to Sakura's joy and she started hugging the young Uchiha.

As Sasuke, Sakura, and Tazuna approached the others, with Sakura supporting Sasuke, Kakashi turned to Naruto.

"Naruto. Can you tell me what happened in that dome?" Naruto then began explaining everything that happened, or at least what he remembered.

"So you beat Haku in your sleep?" Sasuke asked, when Naruto was done explaining.

"Well, everything that happened between the time when I thought that you had died and when Haku's mask fell off was only a blur to me." Naruto clarified.

"I see…" Kakashi said '_He fought and defeated Haku without being conscious, fighting purely on instinct… was it the Kyubi? …No… We all would have felt its chakra and its power wouldn't have simply receded like this. The only other explanation would be that he was overcome by the genetic memory of this Kekkei Genkai he's unlocked. But, I've never heard of such a thing happening before, or at least not in the Uchiha or Hyuga clans. And where did it come from? Neither sensei nor Kushina had a Dojutsu.'_

"Haku said earlier that I seemed to have a Dojutsu. Did my eyes change like Sasuke's did?" Naruto asked looking up at his sensei.

"Yes Naruto, your eyes changed."

"Cool. Do you recognize what they are Kakashi-sensei? And what do they look like anyway?"

"Their purple with four rings like a ripple pattern centered on the pupil. And no, Naruto, I do not recognize this Dojutsu." Was Kakashi's reply.

"Seriously? That sounds pretty freaky, though I guess their cooler then the Sharingan." Naruto said as Sasuke scoffed "What was that, Sasuke-teme?"

"Please, those eyes of yours cannot compare to the Sharingan." Sasuke said, not entirely believing that himself.

"Oh yeah? Does everything look black with white outlines, with the Sharingan? Can you see chakra with them?" Naruto asked.

"I can see chakra with them." Sasuke said before forcing himself out of Sakura's arms and walking past Naruto and Kakashi.

"Naruto, could you deactivate those eyes?" Kakashi asked.

"Ok…how do I do that sensei?" Naruto asked as he remembered that he doesn't know how to deactivate the eyes.

"Just stop channeling chakra to your eyes."

Naruto then did as he was told and closed his eyes in concentration and, but when he opened them again, they hadn't changed at all.

"All right. Everything's normal now." Naruto said as his vision had returned to normal.

Kakashi deadpanned at him. "Actually, they still look the same."

"What? Really? But everything looks normal again." Naruto asked in shock and Kakashi sighed.

"I get the feeling that's the best we're going to get. Come on, we'll have to figure out something later." Kakashi said as they all headed to Tazuna's house.

The next couple of weeks went by smoothly without problem. It had been decided that Zabuza and Haku would come with team 7 to Konoha and in order to hide Naruto's eyes they decided to get him a pair of sunglasses. After the bridge was finally built, all the villagers assembled to say goodbye to the six shinobi.

"Thanks to all of you, in the end we completed the bridge and our land is free from that tyrant's clutches. But, it's sad to see you guys go." Tazuna said, resting his hand on Inari's head. "Thanks for everything."

"Don't worry, we'll be sure to visit." Naruto said.

"You…better…" Tazuna's grandson, Inari said, struggling to hold back his tears.

Naruto's smile fell as he too struggled to hold back tears before his expression returned to a grin, though he continued shaking. "You sad Inari? It's ok to cry, Dattebayo."

"I'm not going to cry." Inari yelled "But you can if you want to."

"Fine… later." Naruto replied, turning his back on Inari. Looking back at Naruto, one could see that, like Inari, he now had tears streaming from his eyes.

Sakura looked at Naruto with a slightly annoyed expression. _'Geez… they're like twins!'_

_'This kid's got a long way to go before he becomes a true shinobi…_' Zabuza thought.

"That boy… he changed Inari's heart. And Inari changed the people's hearts. That boy brought courage back to this nation." One of the villagers said as he watched the ninja's retreating figures.

"Oh, yeah. We need to name this bridge, don't we?" The villager asked.

"Well, I have a perfect name for it."

"Oh? What is it?" Tazuna's daughter, Tsunami asked her father.

"How about… the Great Naruto Bridge?" Tazuna replied. The smiles from the others told him they agreed as they continued to watch the Shinobi walking towards Konoha.

Chapter preview

Hiruzen's assistant "Hokage-sama, Kakashi-san's team has returned, but…"

Hiruzen "But what? Is there a problem?"

Hiruzen's assistant "The demon, Momochi Zabuza is with them!"

Zabuza "Next time on Naruto: Rinnegan Jinchuriki: Chakra elements and water walking."

Character status

Naruto: Power level: 10

Techniques: Henge, Kawarimi, Oroike, Harem, Kage Bunshin.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Kekkei Genkai: unknown.

Sasuke: Power level: 20

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi, Goukakyo.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Kekkei Genkai: Sharingan.

Sakura: Power level: 5

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Kakashi: Power level: 75

Techniques: Henge, Kawarimi, Bunshin, Kage Bunshin, Raikiri, Magen: Narakumi, Doton: Shinju zanshu, Doton: Doryuheki, Doton: Moguragakure, Fuja hoin, Katon: Goukakyo, Genjutsu: Sharingan, Kirigakure, Raiton: Kage Bunshin, Taju Kage Bunshin, Sennen Goroshi, Kage Bunshin, Sairento kiringu, Kuchiyose, Kuchiyose: Doton: Tsuiga, Mizu Bunshin, Suiton: Daibakufu, Suiton: Suijinheki, Suiton: Suiryudan.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Kekkei Genkai: Sharingan.

Haku: Power level: 40

Techniques: Hissatsu hyoso, Makyo hyoso, Senatsu suisho.

Weapons: senbon.

Kekkei Genkai: Hyoton.

Zabuza: Power level: 75

Techniques: Kirigakure, Mizu Bunshin, Sairento Kiringu, Suiro, Suiton: Daibakufu, Suiton: Suiryudan.

Weapons: Kubikiribocho.

**A/N: Well that's it, now I'm done with the prologues for all eight stories. Also if you're wondering, yes in time others will find out about Naruto's Dojutsu. I won't point out any names, but in the chunin selection exams there will be at least five or six others that will be made aware of it. I've also decided on a pairing for Naruto, but who it is will remain a secret until Naruto meets her. It might be a while till my next update of course since I'm writing eight stories.**


	2. Chakra elements and water walking

**Naruto: Rinnegan Jinchuriki**

**A/N: Sorry for the long wait, but since I'm writing 8 stories, I decided to only concentrate on one story each weak, and then there was also summer vacation, so I couldn't update this story when I had planned to.**

"Rinnegan." Normal speech

'_Rinnegan.'_ Normal thought

"**Rinnegan." Biju speech**

'_**Rinnegan.' **_**Biju thought**

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing!

Chapter 1: Chakra elements and water walking

Konoha was – for the most part – a peaceful village despite their record of not managing to capture or kill their missing-nins, but despite being so peaceful, when team 7 returned to the village, several riots nearly broke out due to who came with them, the feared demon of Kiri, Momochi Zabuza and his apprentice, the Hyoton user Haku.

In the Hokage tower was the Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen facing the worst enemy of any Kage, paper work. But he had no idea that he was about to get a whole lot more paper work until his assistant came in.

"Hokage-sama, Kakashi-san's team has returned, but…" The assistant said.

"But what? Is there a problem?" Hiruzen asked.

"The demon, Momochi Zabuza is with them!" The assistant said and Hiruzen's jaw dropped, after all the team of one jonin and three genin was only on a C-ranked mission, how in the world did they run into Zabuza?

Later team 7, Zabuza and Haku was standing in Hiruzen's office and Kakashi just knew that he was gonna be yelled at.

"…I see, so you two want to live here in Konoha?" Hiruzen said after he had been told what happened.

"That's right." Zabuza said.

"Well, we can't just allow someone who tried to assassinate their own Kage to live here!" Hiruzen said.

"Yagura is a tyrant; I acted in the best interests of my village!" Zabuza said.

"I see, very well then, but you, Zabuza will be on prohibition for six months and after that you'll only be allowed to take on D and C-ranked missions for another six months!" Hiruzen said before looking at Haku.

"Haku, you'll be on prohibition for only one month and after that you'll only be allowed to go on D and C-ranked missions for another month, also we need to determine your skills so that we can find out what rank you'll be!" Hiruzen said before looking at Kakashi.

"Kakashi, you should have returned to the village after the mission got upped to an A-rank, so that we could've sent another team. And we could've made a deal with the Land of Waves so that they could've paid us back gradually, but instead you decided to take on an A-ranked mission with three genin, fresh out of the academy!" Hiruzen said.

"Those three are fresh out of the academy? What have you been teaching them anyway?" Zabuza asked in disbelief as he looked over at Kakashi, wondering how they could've held their own against Haku, maybe it's just that this year's rookie-9 are special, or maybe it's just those three.

"Just a few chakra control exercises and tree climbing!" Kakashi said with a nervous chuckle.

"That's all you've been teaching them? They should at least have learned water walking by now." Zabuza said.

"Well, enough about the three genins training for now, I would want to know what Dojutsu that Naruto has, can you show it to me?" Hiruzen asked before Naruto took of his sunglasses and the Hokage gasped, recognizing the Dojutsu from the legends…the legends of the Rikudo Sennin.

"You know what they are, jiji?" Naruto asked.

"Yes, there's no mistake about it. That's the Rinnegan, most powerful of the Dojutsu and possibly the most powerful Kekkei Genkai!" Hiruzen said and everyone in the room gasped.

"Cool, guess that means that my eyes are even better than Sasuke's!" Naruto said as he looked down on his hand and activated his eyes.

'_The Rinnegan? But that's only a myth…right. Could it be that the dobe has unlocked the eyes of the Rikudo Sennin?'_ Sasuke thought.

'_So, the Rinnegan really does exist after all, I just hope that Yagura don't find out about it, then he might declare war on Konoha in order to erase those eyes!'_ Zabuza thought.

"Hokage-sama, are you sure that it's the Rinnegan?" Kakashi asked.

"Yes, one of my students, Jiraiya once had three students from Ame and one of them had the Rinnegan, so there's no mistake." Hiruzen said.

"Wait, if these Kekkei Genkai things geos through family, then could I be related to him? I would love to meet him!" Naruto said excitedly.

"Sorry, but he died a long time ago!" Hiruzen said and Naruto looked disappointedly down on the floor.

"But Naruto, if you want to I could ask Jiraiya to teach you how to use those eyes of yours!" Hiruzen said and Naruto's face instantly litted up as he looked at the old Hokage.

"Really jiji? Where is he?" Naruto asked.

"I don't know where he's at right now, but he's scheduled to return to the village in about 2 months around the time when the chunin exams begin, so you can start training under him then!" Hiruzen said.

"What are the chunin exams?" Naruto asked and everyone looked at him and sweatdropped.

"It's where genin like yourself can get the chance to be promoted to chunin; I did in fact plan on recommending you three for the exams!" Kakashi said.

"Alright, now I'm finally gonna show everyone what I'm made of!" Naruto yelled.

"Naruto, now that you are in position of the Rinnegan, it might be time that you find out who your parents are, but…" Hiruzen said before he got interrupted by Naruto.

"Really? Come on, who were they? Tell me!" Naruto yelled.

"Easy Naruto, let me finish first, will you?" Hiruzen said and when Naruto had calmed down he continued "Now, as I was saying. I'm going to tell you who your parents were, but only if you pass the chunin exams!"

"WHAT, But why?" Naruto asked.

"Well, your parents had a lot of enemies, especially from Iwa, and if they were to find out about you, you'd become a target for assassinations! But now that you have the Rinnegan, you'll become a target either way!" Hiruzen said before looking at Kakashi and Zabuza "I'll leave their training up to you until the exams!"

"Understood Hokage-sama." Kakashi and Zabuza said at the same time.

Training field 3 (Memorial stone training field)

The next day, the three genin, Haku and Zabuza had arrived early on team 7's usual training field, but Kakashi had still not shown up so Zabuza decided to test the three genin in a sparring match.

The match didn't last long however, Sakura was easily knocked out, Naruto went a few minutes later and Sasuke was barely standing when Kakashi finally showed up.

"I see that you're getting along nicely!" Kakashi said as he arrived.

"'Bout time you decided to show up." Zabuza said.

"So, how were they?" Kakashi asked.

"Pitiful, I barely even touched the girl, the kid never used his eyes during the battle and was only able to last as long as he did due to his massive stamina and the Uchiha is relying to much on his Sharingan!" Zabuza said.

"So, what should we teach them first?" Kakashi asked.

"First of all, they'd need to learn water walking, so that they could get better control of their chakra!" Zabuza said and Kakashi nodded in agreement.

"Agreed." The copy-nin said.

After Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura had rested a little, they were given the explanation of how to walk on the water surface and they started the water walking exercise.

Sakura got it down rather quickly due to her fine chakra control while Naruto and Sasuke were having trouble, with Naruto always using too little chakra and Sasuke using too much, but after several days of water walking, they had eventually mastered it.

Kakashi had also told Naruto how to use Kage Bunshins and he even forced the blond to study, or rather, forced about a hundred of the blonds Bunshins to study while the original worked on water walking.

The day after Naruto and Sasuke had mastered the exercise, the three genin, Haku and Zabuza were once again standing in the training field, waiting for Kakashi.

"Say, Naruto-san, I've noticed that you haven't used your eyes since Waves!" Haku said.

"Well, I find it hard using them while I'm doing the Kage Bunshins!" Naruto said.

"How so?" Haku asked.

"Well, when I use the eyes while also using Kage Bunshins, I see what the Bunshins are seeing as well and it's rather confusing!" Naruto said.

"That's good, using a weapon that is unknown to you is a sure way to get killed! But you should learn to use your eyes in battle while also using Kage Bunshins; it could save your life on several occasions!" Zabuza said.

"Oh, how?" Naruto asked.

"Create a Bunshin!" Zabuza ordered and Naruto immediately did as he said "Now, activate your eyes!" Naruto once again did as he was told "And now close them."

Naruto closed his eyes and Zabuza took his sword off his back and swung it at the original Naruto, but said Naruto ducked under the large sword despite having his eyes closed.

"Zabuza-sensei, what'd you do that for?" Sakura asked.

"Showing the brat how useful his eyes really are!" Zabuza said as Naruto stood back up while opening his eyes.

"You didn't have to swing your sword at me!" The blond yelled and just then Kakashi appeared in a puff of smoke.

"Sorry I'm late, but I had to go and get something for our training!" Kakashi said as he got out four slips of paper.

"What's that Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked.

"These are chakra papers and with them, we're gonna confirm your elemental affinities!" Kakashi said as he gave one to each of the genin "Now charge your chakra through the paper and we'll know what affinity you have."

"Affinity?" Naruto asked.

"As you probably know, there are five main elements: Fire, Wind, Lightning, Earth and Water, each person is born with at least one of those affinities. However, there are some that are born with two and they can usually use the sub-element or Kekkei Genkai that comes from combining those two elements!" Kakashi explained as he gave the fourth slip to Haku "Why don't you demonstrate?"

Haku charged chakra through the paper and suddenly it became damp before it was split in half.

"Wow, you've got two?" Naruto asked.

"That's right, I've got Water and Wind, if you combine those two, and you get Ice! Of course I doubt that any of you have two." Haku said.

Sakura was the first to try and she charged chakra through the slip of paper and suddenly, it turned to dust.

"What does this mean, Kakashi-sensei?" She asked.

"You appear to have Earth!" Kakashi said before Sasuke gave it a try and his slip wrinkled, this was a surprise to him 'cause he had expected his affinity to be Fire, not Lightning, he was an Uchiha after all, but then the paper suddenly burned to ashes.

"Lightning and Fire!" Kakashi confirmed and then it was finally Naruto's turn and his paper wrinkled, but then what no one had expected happened, after it wrinkled, it turned damp before being split in half and then one half turned to dust while the other burned to ashes.

"Well that…was unexpected!" Zabuza said and – for the first time since anyone present had first met him – showed an emotion, surprise.

"So, I've got all five?" Naruto asked.

"Seems that way! Hm, I wonder if this means that you can learn all of the sub-elements as well." Kakashi said.

"Cool." Naruto exclaimed.

"From now on, Naruto, you'll train under Zabuza, Sakura, you'll train under Haku and Sasuke, you'll train under me!" Kakashi said.

"Kakashi-sensei, why are you training Sasuke?" Naruto asked.

"What? You don't want me to train you?" Zabuza asked.

"No, it's not that, it's just that everyone seems to be playing favorites with Sasuke!" Naruto said.

"I'm not playing favorites, it's just that I'm the logical choice to train him since we both have the Lightning affinity, plus I'm the only other one in the village with a Sharingan." Kakashi said, truth be told he'd rather train Naruto since he's Minato-sensei's son, but there's no one else that could teach Sasuke how to use his eyes properly.

The rest of the time till the exams would begin, Kakashi was teaching Sasuke about Raiton and he even taught the Uchiha the Chidori and the copy-nin also helped Sasuke with his Taijutsu. Haku was teaching Sakura about medical herbs and also taught her how to use and block Genjutsu. Zabuza decided to teach Naruto some Suiton jutsus and he also helped patching up the blond's Taijutsu and he also helped Naruto with using the eyes while doing Kage Bunshin no jutsu.

"Hey, Kakashi-sensei. could you teach me how to do Futon jutsus?" Naruto asked one day when the six of them were eating lunch.

"Sorry Naruto, I might have copied a thousand jutsus, but there are so few with the wind affinity that I haven't been able to copy any Futon jutsus!" Kakashi said and Naruto turned to Haku.

"How 'bout you, Haku-san?" The blond asked.

"I don't know any Futon jutsus, I never really bothered learning any." Haku said.

"Why do you wanna learn Futon anyway?" Kakashi asked.

"Ah, well, I wanted to master Hyoton before the exams and I figured that it'd been easier to do so if I mastered Futon!" Naruto said.

"Well, there is one with the Wind affinity in the village, knowing who's on his team, I'll bet that he's probably at the BBQ restaurant right now!" Kakashi said before standing up "If you want to, I could take you to him!"

"That'd be great!" Naruto exclaimed before putting on his sunglasses.

BBQ

Naruto's jaw dropped when he saw who the Futon user's team was, out of all of the graduates, they were the last team he'd expect to pass the genin exams.

The lazy cloud watcher Nara Shikamaru, the Sasuke fan-girl Yamanaka Ino and the fatso Akimichi Choji.

"Oh, Kakashi-san, I didn't expect to see you here!" The leading jonin for team 10, Sarutobi Asuma said and this also caught the attention of his three students who had yet to notice Kakashi and Naruto.

"Huh, Naruto?" Choji asked as he ate some meat.

"Hey, Shikamaru, Choji, Ino!" Naruto said.

"Naruto, where'd you get those sunglasses?" Ino asked, not having seen the blond with sunglasses before, or any kind of glasses for that matter.

"What? You like them?" Naruto asked, trying to change the topic before they'd start asking him why he's got sunglasses.

"Asuma-san, Naruto here would like some help with Futon, so I wondered if you were willing to teach him." Kakashi said.

"So, you have the Wind affinity huh? Well, okay, come to training field 10 tomorrow morning and don't be late, though knowing who your sensei is, that's probably impossible!" Asuma said.

"You don't have to worry 'bout that, I'm always on time!" Naruto said.

Training field 10

The next day, Naruto came to the training field to find Asuma, Shikamaru, Choji and Ino already there.

"Ah, good. Despite what you said yesterday, I was afraid Kakashi-san's sense of punctuality had rubbed off on you!" Asuma said.

"So, what first?" Naruto asked.

"Well, if I'm going to train you, then I'd first like to see what you've got!" Asuma said as he got out his trench knives.

"Wait, Asuma-sensei, you're not gonna fight him are you?" Ino asked.

"Don't worry; I'm only going to test how strong he is. Besides from what I've heard about who's been training him, he's probably used to worse! You ready, Naruto?" Asuma said.

"Yeah, I guess." Naruto said, not entirely sure himself, but it couldn't really be as bad as sparring with Zabuza-sensei, now could it?

"Here I come, Naruto." Asuma said as he charged at the blond, while channeling Wind chakra through his knives.

Naruto dodged the knives and jumped away before landing on a small river that came through the training field and he went through several hand signs before stopping at the tori sign.

"Suiton: Suiryudan no jutsu." He called out and a dragon made of water came up from the river and made its way towards the jonin who easily dodged it.

'_Suiton? And a jutsu of that magnitude as well, I guess Zabuza-san really has been pushing the kid!'_ Asuma thought as he went through several hand signs himself.

"Futon: Kamikaze no jutsu." Asuma called out the name of the attack and blew a powerful gust of wind at the blond.

The attack hit and Naruto was sent flying into a tree, but then he disappeared in a puff of smoke.

'_Kage Bunshin, huh? Impressive.'_ Asuma thought before he felt something under him and he jumped away just in time to avoid an uppercut punch from Naruto as he burst from the ground '_Doton too. Well, I guess there's more to this kid than meets the eye! But it's time to end this!'_

Asuma then formed several hand signs, this time for his most lethal jutsu, of course he wasn't planning on adding the explosion, he was only going to use the smoke screen as a cover for his follow-up attack.

"Katon: Haisekisho." Asuma then spewed a lot of black smoke at Naruto, who was completely engulfed by it.

Naruto activated his eyes so he'd be able to see Asuma's chakra and he saw it just in time to avoid a slash from one of the trench knives, he had also noticed the chakra coming out of the knives so he managed to dodge it completely unscathed. But then Asuma quickly kicked Naruto in the stomach hard enough to send the blond flying straight through a nearby tree.

"Looks like the battle's over!" Asuma said as he walked out of the smoke cloud.

"Naruto, are you all right?" Choji asked.

"Y-yeah, don't worry about me, Choji!" Naruto said as he climbed to his feet and got over the stump of the tree that he had flown through.

"Naruto catch!" Asuma said before he threw a shuriken towards one of the trees near the blond and suddenly, a leaf – that had been cut off from the branch it had been on by the shuriken – fell down and landed in Naruto's hand.

"Now hold that leaf in between your hands and cut it in half, using only your chakra!" Asuma instructed and the blond did as he was told.

To tell the truth, Asuma had expected Naruto to take at least several days to cut the leaf in half, but said blond only took about half a day to cut it. Of course Asuma didn't know about the Rinnegan, nor the enhancements it gave Naruto with chakra control.

"Alright, I did it!" Naruto cheered when he had finally cut the leaf in half.

"Good work, Naruto. Now for the second part…" Asuma said and suddenly, in a puff of smoke, appeared an ANBU "This ANBU will ready the training field for the next part."

The ANBU then weaved several hand signs before the ground under him suddenly rose up to about ten or so meters and then he weaved more hand signs and a waterfall came down before he clasped his hands together and a tree branch suddenly came out of the wall and went past the waterfall and into the wall on the other side.

"Wow, I've got to learn how to do that." Naruto said as he and the other three genins were awestruck by the display of Doton, Suiton and even Mokuton that they saw before them.

"Thanks for your help, you may leave now." Asuma said.

"Very well, Asuma-sensei." The ANBU said before disappearing in the same manner as he came.

"That was Mokuton, but I thought that only the Shodai could do it! Asuma-sensei, how is it that that guy could do Mokuton?" Ino said.

"Alright Naruto, now I want you to get up on that branch and use Wind chakra to cut the waterfall!" Asuma said, completely ignoring Ino's question.

Naruto jumped up on the branch – which was about five meters above the ground – and sat down before he extended his arms and channeled chakra through them and into the water in an attempt to cut it.

Cutting the waterfall proved to be a lot harder than the leaf and it took Naruto a whole weak to get it done, but in the end he did it and it was over to the third part of the training.

"Alright Naruto, now take a kunai and channel your chakra through it, making it sharper." Asuma said.

"But Asuma-sensei, aren't ninja weapons already sharp? Why make them sharper?" Naruto asked.

"Here, take this." Asuma said as he gave the blond one of his trench knifes "I'll channel chakra through mine and then we'll throw the knifes at that tree at the same time."

Both channeled chakra through their respective knifes and then they threw them, Naruto's knife got imbedded in the tree while Asuma's not only went straight through the tree, but also pierced the rock behind it.

"Wow. Yours went straight through the tree and even pierced the rock behind it!" Naruto said in amazement.

"If I had wanted to, I could have gotten it through the rock and into the ground!" Asuma said.

Naruto then got out a kunai and started channeling chakra through it before he trew it at the tree.

After a little while, Naruto had finally mastered Wind chakra and Asuma even decided to teach the blond two Futon jutsus. Then said blond went to Haku to learn Hyoton, but he knew that he had to hurry since around the elemental countries there were other teams that were preparing for the exams as well.

Training field 3

It was only a week till the exams begins and Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura were finishing off their training for said exams with a sparring match against Zabuza.

"Katon: Housenka no jutsu." Sasuke called out the name of his new jutsu a fired several fire balls at the jonin, but Zabuza easily dodged them before weaving several hand signs.

"Suiton: Suiryudan no jutsu." He called out and a water dragon came out of the nearby river.

"Futon: Kamikaze no jutsu." Naruto called out and a powerful wind hit the water dragon, cancelling Zabuza's jutsu and Naruto quickly followed up with another jutsu.

"Hyoton: Sensatsu suisho." The blond called out and the water from the water dragon suddenly went up into the air and formed several needles of ice.

The needles flew at Zabuza, but the demon of the mist blocked them with his sword, however he was too preoccupied with Naruto to notice Sakura throwing two senbon at his neck and he collapsed down. Good thing she had a good aim or he'd been dead right now.

"Heh, alright, we were able to beat Zabuza-sensei!" Naruto said.

"Yeah, but there might still be teams entering the exams that are more challenging than him." Sasuke said.

"Then why would they still be genin?" Sakura asked.

Training field 10

Just like team 7 had been training for the exams, team 10 had also been training. Right now however, Shikamaru was sitting in his usual thinking pose, trying to come up with a strategy, Choji was eating his favorite chips and Ino was getting in some shuriken training, by trying to hit the center of a target, but she never managed to hit the exact center, though she was pretty close.

"Finally, I did it." Ino said when she finally hit the center of the target.

"So, (crunch) you think (crunch) there'll be (crunch) many strong opponents (crunch) at the exams (crunch) Shikamaru?" Choji asked his best friend.

"I don't know, but either way, it won't be easy!" Shikamaru said.

Training field 8

In training field 8 were team 8 – consisting of Inuzuka Kiba, his dog Akamaru, Aburame Shino and Hyuga Hinata – preparing for the exams as well.

"Alright Akamaru, we're gonna rule at those exams!" Kiba exclaimed and Akamaru barked in agreement.

"You shouldn't get too overconfident. Why, because overconfidence leads to foolish actions and we could get defeated by an opposing team!" Shino said.

"Hey, who asked you, huh?" Kiba yelled.

While the two boys of the team were talking, Hinata was continuously hitting a pole with palm strikes, sending out small waves of chakra with each strike.

Training field 2

In training field 2 were there several dummies that were hanging from the trees and they had several kunai and shuriken sticking into them.

"Hey! Hey! Hey, did you hear? The chunin exam's coming up… word is they'll be letting members of the rookie class compete for the first time in five years!" A boy with a bowl cut, green spandex suit and a Konoha Hitai-ate around his waist said.

"No way! It probably has something to do with the rivalry among the jonin." A girl with her hair in twin buns and was playing with a kunai said.

"I doubt that. They say three of them are in the team trained by Kakashi." The boy said.

"The Kakashi? That's interesting…" A boy with long hair and white eyes who was sitting under one of the dummies said.

"Well, either way…" The girl started as she threw the kunai and hit the dead center of a target on the dummy that the boy with white eyes was sitting under.

"It all has a very sad sound to it." The boy with the white eyes finished for his female teammate. This was last year's rookie team 1 consisting of Hyuga Neji, Rock Lee and Tenten.

Sunagakure

In the desert village of Sunagakure were four people standing in a room somewhere in the Kazekage tower.

One of them had a turban on his head and he had tattoos on his right cheek, he also wore a jonin uniform and he had a Suna Hitai-ate on his forehead.

Another one had brown – almost red – hair, green eyes with black circles around them, meaning that he probably hadn't been sleeping well and above his left eye was the kanji for love.

The third one had purple make-up on his face and he was in a black cat-like suit with his Suna Hitai-ate part of the hat.

The fourth one had blond hair in four ponytails and she was the only female among them, her Suna Hitai-ate was worn around her neck.

"We of Suna shall join with Oto and this will probably end in war against Konoha. This is an A-ranked mission… remember that." The jonin said.

"A war? Why? Why now? We've spent so much and sacrificed so much to arrive at this treaty of alliance… and now we're breaking it. So many will die again!" The girl yelled.

"Shinobi are fundamentally instruments of conflict. The treaty of alliance itself is a threat to our very existence. You genin may not know the details, but… that idiot Daimyo of the Land of Wind used the treaty as his opportunity to force military cutbacks on our village of Sunagakure. The alliance caused the Wind Daimyo to put his trust in Konoha and forward requests to them that he should have been sending to us, further slashing the flow of funds to his own nation's shinobi village claiming that his scheme was cheaper. When the head is a fool, it is we, the hands and feet, who suffer. In order to maintain its military strength, our village had no choice but to raise the quality of each shinobi. That is why shinobi like you were "manufactured"… Gaara." The jonin said, looking at the one with brown hair at the last part.

"Right now, the very existence of the Land of Wind is in peril. Kazekage-sama – who sensed the impending crisis of Sunagakure's military decline – decided to join forces with Otogakure to show our idiot Daimyo the naiveté of his policies. And – at the same time – to crush Konoha and restore Sunagakure to prosperity. If we wait any longer, all the military strength of Suna will be utterly drained, and our capability to fight Konoha totally lost. Gaara, this mission… depends heavily on you!" the jonin continued.

"I know." Gaara said in a stoic tone.

Otogakure

Three shinobi were bowing down in front of their master Orochimaru of the legendary three Sannin.

"Remember your mission, you will not enter the exams for the chance of becoming chunin, you'll enter them so that you can kill Uchiha Sasuke-kun! Understood?" Orochimaru said.

"Yes, Orochimaru-sama!" The three shinobi before him said at the same time.

Takigakure

The village of Takigakure, just like the name suggests was hidden behind a waterfall. At the gate was a team of four shinobi preparing to leave the village for Konoha to join the exams.

"Now it's finally time to show those genin from the other villages that we are just as good as the major village shinobi! Right Nanabi-san?" A boy with shoulder length brown hair said as he looked at his green-haired teammate.

"Yeah, let's show 'em what we've got, Shibuki-kun, Takimaru-kun." The girl said.

"Now, now, you shouldn't be so enthusiastic about this. After all I've heard that the Kyubi Jinchuriki lives in Konoha and there might be a chance that he'll be in the exams!" Their jonin sensei warned them.

"Maybe, but this time 7'll beat 9!" The girl said.

Iwagakure

The village of Iwagakure was the third biggest of the five major villages when it came to size, but when it came to military strength, they were definitely the second biggest.

In the Tsuchikage tower was the Tsuchikage, Onoki sitting at his desk in his office and in front of him was his son Kitsuchi.

"…you understand the mission I'm assigning you and your team to, right?" Onoki asked and Kitsuchi nodded.

"My team is to enter the chunin selection exams in Konoha while secretly spying on the village!" Kitsuchi said.

"That's right Kitsuchi. Now remember this is an A-ranked mission. Konoha's been on the top for too long and it's time to bring it down a few paces! Dismissed" Onoki said and Kitsuchi disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Iwa, southern gate

At the village's southern gate, Kitsuchi had assembled his team and was ready to leave.

"Do you all understand the mission?" Kitsuchi asked.

"Yes, sensei/tou-san." The three genin said at the same time.

One of them – the one who said "tou-san" – was a girl with short black hair, a red t-shirt and brown pants and she had her Iwa Hitai-ate on her forehead.

Another one was a large boy with short black hair, a red jacket, with a red t-shirt underneath and black shorts. He also had his Hitai-ate on his forehead.

The last one was a boy with long blond hair that went down to his mid-back, a brown jacket with a fishnet shirt underneath and red pants. He also wore his Iwa Hitai-ate around his left bicep.

"Then let's head to Konoha and beat up some Konoha tree-huggers!" Kitsuchi said before the four of them started the long journey towards Konoha.

Chapter preview

Kurotsuchi "Well, would you look at that? The last of the Uchiha!"

Fu '_So that's the Kyubi Jinchuriki, huh?'_

Lee "You and me, here and now…want to fight?"

Naruto "Hyoton: Sensatsu suisho."

Kurotsuchi "Yoton: Sekkaigyo no jutsu."

Sasuke "Next time on Naruto: Rinnegan Jinchuriki: The chunin exams begins."

Character status

Naruto: Power level: 30

Techniques: Henge, Kawarimi, Oiroke, Harem, Kage Bunshin, Suiton: Suiryudan, Doton: Moguragakure, Futon: Kamikaze, Hyoton: Sensatsu suisho.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Kekkei Genkai: Rinnegan, Hyoton.

Sasuke: Power level: 30

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi, Katon: Goukakyo, Katon: Housenka.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Kekkei Genkai: Sharingan.

Sakura: Power level: 15

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi.

Weapons: senbon.

Kakashi: Power level: 75

Techniques: Henge, Kawarimi, Bunshin, Kage Bunshin, Raikiri, Magen: Narakumi, Doton: Shinju zanshu, Doton: Doryuheki, Doton: Moguragakure, Fuja hoin, Katon: Goukakyo, Genjutsu: Sharingan, Kirigakure, Raiton: Kage Bunshin, Taju Kage Bunshin, Sennen Goroshi, Kage Bunshin, Sairento kiringu, Kuchiyose, Kuchiyose: Doton: Tsuiga, Mizu Bunshin, Suiton: Daibakufu, Suiton: Suijinheki, Suiton: Suiryudan.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Kekkei Genkai: Sharingan.

Haku: Power level: 40

Techniques: Hissatsu hyoso, Makyo hyoso, Sensatsu suisho.

Weapons: senbon.

Kekkei Genkai: Hyoton.

Zabuza: Power level: 75

Techniques: Kirigakure, Mizu Bunshin, Sairento Kiringu, Suiro, Suiton: Daibakufu, Suiton: Suiryudan.

Weapons: Kubikiribocho.

Asuma: Power level: 70

Techniques: Futon: Kamikaze, Katon: Haisekisho, Hien, Futon: Fujin, Futon: Suiran reppu, Raigo: Senjusatsu.

Weapons: trench knives/chakra blades.

**A/N: If you think that this chapter was a little rushed then you're right, but I just wanted to get to the chunin exam as quickly as possible, the chapter after next chapter in particular. Also Fu's teammate, Takimaru is an OC of mine and if you're wondering why Shibuki's on their team, well I haven't really seen the Taki episode, but I've heard about it and Taki is after all a shinobi village so it would naturally have a shinobi leader, so I decided that Shibuki could be one of Fu's teammates. Also one of Kurotsuchi's teammates is also an OC of mine who'll also appear in several of my other stories as well. He will also become a more important character in part 2 than he is in part 1. And he's got a Kekkei Genkai, though he hasn't unlocked it yet and he won't until near the end of part 1.**


	3. The chunin exams begins

**Naruto: Rinnegan Jinchuriki**

**Chunin exam arc**

**A/N: In the prologue I said that Naruto's pairing would remain a secret that wouldn't be revealed until he met the girl that he'd be paired up with, well you might get a good idea of who it is in this chapter, but if you don't there'll be several hints next chapter, so you'll have something to look forward to.**

"Rinnegan." Normal speech

'_Rinnegan.'_ Normal thought

"**Rinnegan." Biju speech**

'_**Rinnegan.' **_**Biju thought**

**Disclaimer: **Naruto is unfortunately owned by Kishimoto Masashi-san. (PS: Don't tell him I said "unfortunately" m'kay?)

Chapter 2: The chunin exams begins

'_Man, Zabuza-sensei sure likes to push me!'_ Naruto thought as he was walking back to his apartment, but then he suddenly felt something and looked over his shoulder to see… a squared rock with eye-holes on the front? Naruto activated his eyes to see that someone familiar was hiding inside the "rock".

"Konohamaru, Udon, Moegi, you can come out of the box now!" Naruto said and the three kids came out of said box.

"Leave it to the man I have acknowledged as being almost my equal! Your skills rival my own!" The leader of the Konohamaru corp, Sarutobi Konohamaru said.

'_Is he really that stupid as to not realize that he's much weaker than I am?' _Naruto thought as he deactivated his eyes.

"Boss, can you come and play ninja with us now? You promised, remember?" Konohamaru asked.

"Oh yeah, that was today, wasn't it?" Naruto said as he scratched the back of his head.

"A ninja, "playing ninja"? how pathetic!" Naruto and the Konohamaru corp turned towards the voice to see a blond girl with her hair in four ponytails and a boy in what looked like a cat costume.

"Yeah. Have you ever heard of something so stupid, Temari-nee-chan?" The boy said.

"Hey, what was that?" Naruto yelled as he raised his fist at the two.

"Well, it seems the kid has got a temper! What do you say Kankuro-nii-san? Should we do something about that temper of his?" Temari said.

"Heh, alright. It'd be good to get some "practice" done before the chunin exams!" Kankuro said, obviously underestimating the blond.

"Hey, do you wanna start something?" Naruto said as he activated his eyes, preparing to fight.

Kankuro took a large bandaged object off his back, but then, a small stone suddenly flew down and hit Kankuro's hand hard enough to wound him.

"Tell me… what are you guys doing in our village?" Everyone looked up to a tree branch to see Sasuke sitting on it.

"Oh, look. Another little brat." Kankuro said as he rubbed his sore hand.

"Get lost." Sasuke said.

"Come down little squirrel! Think you're pretty smart don't you?" Kankuro said.

"You shouldn't be so overconfident! We're two of the best genins in Konoha, so you better watch yourself!" Naruto said.

"Two of Konoha's best, huh? Well if you're the best then the worst must have to be pretty pathetic!" Kankuro said before laughing.

Then Naruto noticed something and he looked up to a branch that was on the same tree as Sasuke was sitting on, only on the other side to see Gaara standing there upside down under the branch. Everyone noticed where Naruto was looking and they all looked up to see Gaara as well.

"G-Gaara…" Kankuro stuttered.

"You're a disgrace to our entire village." Gaara said.

'_He… he snuck up on me… I didn't even have a clue! But Naruto, he noticed him. Damn that Rinnegan!' _Sasuke thought.

"It annoys me that you'd lose control in a quarrel with children! Have you forgotten why we came here?" Gaara said.

"B-but… Gaara, they…" Kankuro started as he pointed at Naruto and the Konohamaru corp, but Gaara cut him off.

"Shut up… or I'll kill you." He said.

"You're right. I was out of line." Kankuro said.

"We're sorry… Gaara, okay? Really, really sorry!" Temari said.

'_So he's in charge, eh? He glares like a basilisk.'_ Sasuke thought.

"Sorry about my friends." Gaara said as he looked towards Sasuke before he disappeared in a twirl of leaves while thinking '_This is the one who nailed Kankuro with a stone. That took skill. And the blond one down there was able to notice me instantly… strange, something about him seems oddly familiar!'_

"I know we're a little early… but we didn't come here to play around. In swear it won't happen again." Gaara said as he appeared on the ground in between Kankuro and Temari before he turned around "Let's go."

"Wait!" Naruto said as Sasuke jumped down from his branch.

"Yes?" Gaara asked as he turned around.

"Tell me, what's your name?" Naruto said.

"Sabaku no Gaara, at your service. And I'm curious about you and your teammate as well." Gaara said.

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto, Dattebayo!" Naruto said.

"Uchiha Sasuke." Sasuke said before the three Suna siblings shunshined away '_Things are getting interesting.'_

On a branch above them were the three Oto ninja standing… or rather two of them were standing while the third one was sitting.

"What do you think?" one of the two that were standing asked.

"None of them are of any importance except for the raven-hair, the blond kid with sunglasses and the spook from Suna." The one who was sitting said.

Unknown to the Konoha shinobi and the Oto shinobi was that on another branch was the three Iwa shinobi standing.

"So, Kurotsuchi-san, what do you think?" The blond one said.

"Those two tree-huggers aren't your everyday genin and neither is the spooky brat from the desert!" Kurotsuchi said as she looked down on Sasuke '_Uchiha Sasuke, huh? The last of the Uchiha clan, he'll be a worthy opponent for me to test my skills on!'_

Ninja Academy

It had been a day since the encounter with the three Suna genin and team 7 was heading towards the academy, where the exams would begin.

When they had walked up a few stairs, they saw the door to room # 301, but there were two guys blocking the door, keeping everyone out.

'_Something's not right here. Rinnegan!'_ Naruto thought as activated his eyes and he saw through the Genjutsu, but that's not all he saw through, he also saw straight through the two chunin's Henges "Drop the Genjutsu already, and you can drop the Henges while you're at it too!"

"So you figured it out, eh?" One of the chunin said and suddenly the sign that said 301 was changed to 201 as the Genjutsu was dropped.

"Not bad, but just seeing through it isn't enough!" The other one said as he moved in to kick Naruto and said blond was about to counter with his own kick, but suddenly, Lee appeared in between them and grabbed both legs.

'_What the…? He blocked my kick, but there's something weird about his chakra, almost as though he can't control it properly! Could it be that he…?'_ Naruto thought as Lee let go and Naruto and the chunin fell to the floor.

"Hey… That's not what we agreed! You're the one who insisted we should avoid drawing any attention to ourselves." Neji said as he walked over to Lee.

"…B-but…" Lee said as he glanced over at Sakura.

"Here we go again…" Tenten said as she shook her head and Lee walked over towards Sakura.

"Hi. My name is Rock Lee. You're Sakura, aren't you?" Lee said before he held a thumb up and smiled as his teeth glistened while he said "Would you like to go out with me? I'll protect you with my life!"

"NO… WAY. You are way out of hand!" Sakura said and Lee slumped.

"Hey, you! What's your name?" Neji asked as he approached Naruto, but before the blond could respond, Sasuke held his hand in front of him.

"It's common courtesy to give your own name first." Sasuke said in Naruto's stead.

"You're rookies, aren't you? How old?" Neji asked.

"We don't have to tell you a thing." Sasuke said before he turned around and started to walk away "Come on, Naruto!"

Naruto then followed him while Neji walked in the opposite direction.

'_This exam… is turning into a freak show.' _Sasuke thought, not having a clue as to how much a freak show it would be.

"Let's go, Lee-san. What are you doing?" Tenten said as she noticed that her teammate was watching the retreating backs of the three members of team 7.

"You guys… go on ahead. There's something I want to check first." Lee said.

Ninja Academy, gym

"Hey, you with the scowl… wait up!" Lee said when he had caught up with the three rookies.

"What is it?" Sasuke asked as he and his two teammates looked up at the older boy.

"You and me, here and now… want to fight?" Lee challenged.

"You want to fight me… here and now?" Sasuke asked.

"Yes!" Lee said before he jumped down and landed in front of them "My name is Rock Lee. Among sticklers, etiquette requires one to introduce oneself before asking for the name of another… Uchiha Sasuke."

"Huh… so you knew who I was all along." Sasuke said and Lee got into a Taijutsu stance.

"I'm calling you out! I want to test the effectiveness of my techniques against the last surviving member of your legendary clan." Lee said.

"So you're challenging me, even knowing my lineage? In other words, you're a fool. So, dog-brow… do you really want to learn… what it means to be an Uchiha?" Sasuke said.

"Absolutely!" Lee said, confidently '_I can hardly wait! I'm going toe-to-toe with the cream of the rookie crop, first time out! Now you'll get the proof you require Guy-sensei!'_

"Sasuke, don't go all out on him! I'd prefer it if we keep our true strength hidden for now." Naruto whispered to his raven-haired teammate.

"Very well, Naruto." Sasuke whispered back.

"Mark my words… none of you will beat me. I… am the greatest fighter among the genin in Konoha!" Lee said.

"This could be fun. I accept your challenge." Sasuke said, but Sakura noticed that they didn't have much time left.

"Don't do it, Sasuke-kun! We have less than half an hour to submit our applications!" She said.

"This will only take five minutes." Sasuke said as he rushed at Lee and Sakura cheered on him.

'_Here goes! I'm sorry Guy-sensei… I may have to break the big rule! I might need… that move!'_ Lee thought before he vanished in a burst of speed and appeared just in front of the Uchiha, ready to deliver a powerful roundhouse kick "Konoha Senpou!"

'_Above me!'_ Sasuke thought before he ducked under the kick, but then Lee was about to kick him again and this time there was no time to dodge it '_No time to duck. Gotta block!'_

Sasuke noticed that Lee was making a hand sign with one hand and suddenly his foot went straight through Sasuke's guard and said Uchiha was sent several meters away.

'_I thought Sasuke-kun blocked that!'_ Sakura thought.

'_Hm, good move, he formed that hand sign to trick Sasuke!' _Naruto thought, following the battle with the Rinnegan.

'_How'd he get under my guard? Is this Taijutsu… or Ninjutsu? A Genjutsu?'_ Sasuke thought before he stood up on his feet.

'_As expected, he's coming back for more!' _Lee thought as he got back into his Taijutsu stance.

'_Fine. This may be my chance getting a little practice using… it.'_ Sasuke thought before activating his Sharingan.

'_So Sasuke's finally deciding on using those eyes of his.' _Naruto thought.

'_So that's the famous Sharingan…'_ Lee thought.

'_Whether it's a Genjutsu or a Ninjutsu… there's some kind of magic at work here!'_ Sasuke thought as he charged at Lee, but said Taijutsu user suddenly disappeared and reappeared below Sasuke, delivering a powerful kick to the Uchiha's jaw and sending him up into the air.

'_My Sharingan couldn't see through his technique. But that means… those moves he's using…'_ Sasuke thought.

"Exactly… they're neither Ninjutsu nor Genjutsu." Lee said as though he knew what Sasuke where thinking before he jumped into the air and appeared behind the Uchiha.

"Oh… Kagebuyo…" Sasuke said, recognizing the technique.

"That's right. No trickery. My moves are strictly physical. Hard as you may find it to accept… if your Sharingan can see to the heart of every ninja art well enough to duplicate it, as it is said to, then you know what I say is true. I'm sure your Sharingan is invaluable against arts like Ninjutsu and Genjutsu, with their formalized rules, sign-casting, and chakra. But physical Taijutsu arts in their pure form are a very different story." Lee explained.

"Heh, I already knew that!" Sasuke said before he suddenly turned around, delivering a kick to Lee's side and the young Taijutsu expert crashed into the ground as Sasuke landed above him.

"**That's enough, Lee!"** Everyone looked towards the voice to see a… turtle?

Lee got up on his feet before walking over to the turtle and going down on his knees "You… you saw?"

"**You know the rules, Lee. The move you were about to do is strictly forbidden!" **The turtle said.

"P-please forgive me… I was only…" Lee said.

'_He's getting chewed out by a turtle…?' _Naruto thought, hardly believing his eyes and if he'd hadn't had the Rinnegan activated, he'd believe that he was under the influence of a Genjutsu.

"I… I wouldn't have used the reversal move… I never meant…" Lee said.

"**YOU FOOL! Do you think I care about your feeble excuses? Consider the repercussions of a shinobi baldly explaining all his secrets!" **The turtle yelled.

"Y-yes sir!" Lee said.

'_What a disgrace, losing to that clown!'_ Sasuke thought.

"**I hope you are properly prepared?" **The turtle said.

"Y-yes sir…" Lee said.

"**Well, then… he's all yours, Guy-sensei!" **The turtle said and in a puff of smoke appeared what looked like an older version of Lee on top of the turtle's shell.

"Ah, the exuberance of youth. All of you are full of it." The man who was obviously Guy said.

"He's got the biggest eyebrows yet! They're almost… alive… and that same dorky 'do… they're… uber-brows! I've never seen anything like 'em!" Sakura said.

"H-hey! Don't try to make fun of Guy-sensei!" Lee yelled while raising his fist at them.

"Oh, shut up! I don't even know what to make of all the freaks who keep popping in here!" Naruto yelled.

"WHAT…" Lee yelled, but he was cut off by his idol.

"Lee!" Guy said and Lee immediately turned to him.

"Huh? Oh! Uh, yes, sir…" Lee said.

"IDIOT!" Guy yelled as he punched Lee son hard that he was knocked to the floor.

"You… you…" Guy said as he crouched down.

"Sensei…!" Lee said before tears suddenly came down from both his and his sensei's eyes, anime style "Sensei… I…I…"

"That's enough, Lee! Not one more word." Guy said as he hugged his pupil.

"Sensei!" Lee said and suddenly, a Genjutsu of a sunset with waves splashing on some rocks appeared.

'_Strange, I can't see through this Genjutsu… even with the Rinnegan!'_ Naruto thought.

'_I got beaten… by some touchy-feely crybaby!' _ Sasuke thought.

"I understand. It's because you're young!" Guy said.

"Sensei!" Lee said.

"It's all right, Lee! Mistakes and youth go hand in hand." Guy said after the hug ended and he had gotten back up on his feet.

"You are too kind… sensei!" Lee said.

"But I can't let your attempt to break the big rule go unpunished. Your penalty will be sweat after the chunin selection exams." Guy said.

"I understand!" Lee said.

"Five hundred laps around the practice arena!" Guy yelled as he pumped his fist into the air.

"Yes, sir!" Lee said before Guy noticed the three other genins that were there.

'_Hmm? Unless I miss my guess, those children… are Kakashi-san's.'_ Guy thought before saying "By the way… how is Kakashi-san? I'm asking you!"

"You know Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked.

"Do I know him?" Guy said before he suddenly vanished as though he was never there or at least that's how it looked like for Sasuke and Sakura, Naruto – although he wasn't able to see Guy himself – he was able to see Guy's chakra.

"I should say so! We're arch-rivals!" Guy said from behind the three of them catching Sasuke and Sakura off guard.

'_He…'_ Sasuke thought as he and his two teammates turned around.

"The score stands at 50 to 49. I'm stronger than he is." Guy said.

'_He's so fast. His speed is much greater than Kakashi-sensei's! Is he even human?' _Sasuke thought in amazement.

"As you can see, Guy-sensei is totally amazing!" Lee said.

"I know Lee started this fight, but take pity on his old teacher. For the sake of my own self-respect, forgive him." Guy said.

'_Who IS this guy? He claims he's stronger than Kakashi-sensei… and I don't think he's bluffing!'_ Sasuke thought.

"You and Lee should head up to the classroom now. Best of luck, Lee! Later!" Guy said before shunshining away.

"Yes, sir! By the way, Sasuke… I was blowing smoke before. I'm really here to prove my strength in combat. And I don't think you're the strongest Konoha genin. The strongest genin is a member of my own team… and I intend to take him down. That's why I'm entering. And by the way… you're on my list, too." Lee said before jumping into the air while yelling "Off to apply for the exam. Be ready for it, okay?"

"Next time, he's dead meat. I won't be holding back then!" Sasuke said.

"Good idea Sasuke, I doubt you can beat him without going all-out!" Naruto said.

"Naruto? Sakura? Let's go!" Sasuke said and the three of them headed towards room # 301.

Ninja Academy, room 301

When team 7 entered the classroom, they were shocked at seeing all of the applicants in the exams. There was enough genin in here from the different villages to fill the entire room, and it wasn't a small room either.

"Sasuke-kun! Where've you been, cutie? I could hardly wait! It's so exciting, seeing you again after all this time!" Ino yelled as she jumped at the Uchiha from behind.

"Ino, you pig! Get your hooves off Sasuke-kun!" Sakura yelled.

"Hello to you, too Sakura. Still hoping the big, mutant forehead look is going to come into fashion, huh? How sweet." Ino said.

"What did you say?" Sakura yelled while raising her fist at Ino.

"Asuma said that there was a good chance that you three would be here." Shikamaru said as he and Choji walked over to them.

"Really?" Naruto asked.

"Yeah, after having seen how strong you were, there was no doubt in his mind that you'd be here!" Shikamaru said.

"Hey! There you are!" Everyone turned towards the voice to see Kiba, Shino and Hinata.

"Uh… hi…" Hinata said.

"Looks like the gang's all here." Kiba said.

"Including you… unfortunately!" Shikamaru said.

"Huh? Naruto, what's with the sunglasses?" Kiba asked as he noticed them.

"I thought they'd look cool!" Naruto said.

As the group continued talking for a while, there was a certain green-haired Taki kunoichi that was observing them; or rather she was observing Naruto. Suddenly came a small insect and landed on her finger.

"You sure?" She whispered and the insect seemed to nod in response.

"Fu-san, what is it?" Shibuki whispered.

"Oh, it's nothing!" Fu responded before she looked towards Naruto, her fellow Jinchuriki '_So that's the Kyubi Jinchuriki, huh?' _Then she looked in the direction of Gaara '_And even Suna's Ichibi is here, this is bound to get interesting!'_

"Would you guys do us all a favor and just shut up?" A man asked as he approached the rookie nine.

The man wore purple clothes, he had silver hair and a Konoha Hitai-ate on his forehead.

"You three gangs of would-be hotshots are all genin, right? Kids barely out of the local ninja academy? All wet-behind-the-ears and runny-nosed! This isn't a school field trip, you know. Who the heck do you think you are? Name's Kabuto. So what? You kids need to open your eyes." The man, now identified as Kabuto said.

"Why?" Sakura asked as she and the others noticed the Ame team behind them that looked rather annoyed to say they the least.

"Watch out for the group behind you. They're Amegakure shinobi and they've got very short fuses. Everyone's on edge, waiting to take the exam. I wanted to give you a heads-up before someone snaps and beats the crap out of you." Kabuto said.

'_Yeah, like that's gonna happen!' _Naruto thought, having found a great way to intimidate people with the Rinnegan, with a little help from Zabuza-sensei of course… okay, a LOT of help.

"But it's probably unavoidable. Like all rookies, you think you already know everything. I remember what it was like." Kabuto said as he reached into his weapons pouch.

"Kabuto-san?" Sakura said.

"Yeah?" Kabuto said.

"Are you saying that this is the second time you've applied?" Sakura asked.

"Not second… seventh, twice a year for… hm, going four years now." Kabuto said.

"Wow… then you've got a lot of experience with what we can expect!" Sakura said.

"I guess so." Kabuto said as he pulled out several cards "Okay… the least I can do is give you sweet little babies some vital intelligence on what you're in for... with these shinobi info cards."

"Shinobi info cards?" Sakura asked.

"To put it simply, they contain information about the skills we use, transformed into symbols and burned into the cards using chakra." Kabuto said as he put down the cards on the floor. He then took one of the cards and laid it down in front of the rookies.

"It took me four years to collect all the intelligence needed for this exam. In all, there are almost 200 cards. They look blank, don't they? The only way you can read the data on the cards is by using my own personal chakra. Each set is linked to its possessor for example, cards like this one…" Kabuto said before channeling chakra into the card.

"What's he doing?" Ino asked before a map of the elemental countries appeared on the card.

"It's some kind of combination map and bar graph, in three dimensions! What kind of intelligence is this?" Sakura said.

"It shows how many applicants each shinobi nation is sending to this session of the chunin exams. There's a total of 159 applicants for the exams with 87 from Konoha, 30 from Suna, 21 from Ame, 9 from Taki, 6 from Kusa, 3 from Oto and – well this is a surprise – even a team from Iwa!" Kabuto said.

"Do you also have dossier cards? Cards for each individual applicant?" Sasuke asked.

"Ha ha… Why? Someone here you have a particular interest in? I'll admit these are far from complete, but I've burned a set of dossier cards for the current pool of applicants, including your team. If you share any data you have on this person who interests you, I'll be happy to look him up and let you know what I have so far." Kabuto said.

"Sabaku no Gaara from Sunagakure and Rock Lee from Konoha." Sasuke said.

"You know their names? No sweat, then!" Kabuto said before took out two cards.

"Let me see them." Sasuke said and Kabuto laid down the card for Rock Lee first.

"First up is Rock Lee. He's a year older than you guys. Missions to date: 20 D-ranked, 11 C-ranked. His team's mentor is Might Guy. And his Taijutsu skills have grown exponentially this past year. He has no other talents worth mentioning. He was considered a standout among last year's genin, but he didn't apply for the chunin exam. He's a first timer, like you guys. His teammates are named Hyuga Neji and Tenten." Kabuto said before laying down Gaara's card.

"Next is Sabaku no Gaara of Suna. 8 C-ranked missions… 1 B. wow! Not many rookie shinobi get B-ranked assignments! Since he's from way out in the desert, I have less on him… but it's interesting. He's come back from every mission completely unscathed. Without a scratch…" Kabuto said before a girl came over to them and walked towards Kabuto.

She had tan skin, green hair, orange eyes, she wore white clothes with red outlines and she had a Taki Hitai-ate wrapped around her right bicep.

"Excuse me, but do you have anything on the blond with the orange "kill me" jumpsuit?" She asked and Kabuto got out the card and laid it on the floor in front of her.

Shino got a strange feeling about her, his insects started acting strangely, almost as though they worshipped the girl… or was it something else they worshipped?

"His name is Uzumaki Naruto. He was known as a fool and a prankster at the Ninja Academy and he was also this year's dead last, but some time after graduating, he went through an incredible change. Also – though he may be only a rookie – he can use three of the main elements, Suiton, Doton and Futon. His missions to date: 7 D-rank and 1 A-rank, wow, that was unexpected, I've never heard of a rookie that got an A-ranked mission before. His sensei is Hatake Kakashi, though for these exams he was trained by Momochi Zabuza of the seven ninja swordsmen. His teammates are Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno Sakura." Kabuto said and everyone of the rookie nine except for Sasuke and Sakura looked at Naruto, they didn't know that he'd been trained by the demon of Kiri.

"Thanks." The girl said before walking back to her teammates while Naruto watched her retreating back. There was something familiar about the girl, so he activated the Rinnegan and concentrated hard until he saw a powerful chakra that was hidden deep inside of her, it wasn't nearly as strong as Kyubi, but it was close.

"Do you have anything on her?" Naruto asked and Kabuto got out another card and laid it down on the floor.

"Her name's Fu. She's what is called a Jinchuriki – someone who has one of the 9 Biju sealed inside of them – and because of this, she doesn't have many friends, if any at all. She's taken 26 D-ranks, 14 C-ranks and 1 B-rank. She's known to have a pretty good relationship with bugs due to her tenant being the Nanabi. Her sensei is Suien and her teammates are Shibuki and Akagan no Takimaru." Kabuto said and Naruto looked over at Fu.

'_She's a Jinchuriki too? Just like me?'_ He thought.

"Konoha, Suna, Iwa, Ame, Kusa, Taki, Oto… this year every hidden village has sent outstanding genin here to compete. I don't know much about Otogakure no sato. It's part of a new, small nation, so intelligence on it is lacking. Every other competing village is well-respected, home to some formidably powerful shinobi." Kabuto said.

"Anybody besides me suddenly feeling kind of outclassed?" Hinata asked.

"What you're trying to tell us is… everyone here…" Sakura said.

"Oh, yeah. They're all like Lee, Gaara, Naruto and Fu… elite hand-picked shinobi, the best young ninja in the world. They have to be! The test is pitiless!" Kabuto said.

"Okay, you lost me at Naruto!" Kiba yelled.

"What Kiba? Can't you take the fact that I'm…" Naruto started, but then he noticed something.

Three shinobi were quickly moving through the crowd, but he and Kabuto seemed to be the only ones to notice them. One of them suddenly jumped into the air before throwing two kunais at Kabuto, but he easily dodged it. However another one came up in front of him and swung his right arm.

'_They're from Oto…'_ Kabuto thought before dodging the Oto-nin's arm, but suddenly his glasses shattered and he took them off while thinking '_I see, this kind of attack… is… hmmm…'_

"What's going on? He dodged the blow, but something broke his glasses!" Sasuke said.

"His nose probably got grazed… serves him right for acting all superior." Shikamaru said.

'_It's not that Kabuto-san wasn't completely able to dodge, he was! But there was more to that attack than the naked eye could see, that guy sent chakra infused sound waves from that device on his right arm… an attack that is impossible to dodge!'_ Naruto thought, having seen it all through the unique vision of the Rinnegan.

Kabuto then suddenly collapsed on his knees and vomited. Everyone in the room that saw it was taken off guard by it, having thought that the guy had dodged the blow.

"Are you all right?" Sakura asked as she got over to Kabuto.

"Yeah… I'm fine…" Kabuto said.

"You're a pushover, aren't you? Pretty sad for someone who's been an applicant for four years now." The one who had attacked Kabuto said.

"Better add this to your cards. The three applicants from Oto will all make chunin this year!" The one who had thrown the kunais said.

'_I know Kabuto ducked that blow… so what happened to him? Why did he vomit?' _Sasuke thought.

Throughout the crowd where people trying to figure out what had just happened.

"Lee, what did that look like to you?" Neji asked.

"Kabuto-san saw through the attack… so there must have been something else to it, some trick they used to make him sick." Lee said.

"Hey, Kurotsuchi-san, what just happened?" Kurotsuchi's large teammate asked.

"That stupid know-it-all wasn't able to dodge in time, obviously!" Kurotsuchi's other teammate said in her stead.

"No, that's not what happened, the tree-hugger dodged it alright, something else must've made him vomit!" Kurotsuchi said.

"There's something, not quite right about this! Takimaru-kun, what did you see?" Fu said.

"That Oto guy sent chakra infused sound waves from that device on his arm, and said waves went into Kabuto-san's left ear!" Takimaru said and suddenly there was a large puff of smoke at the front of the large classroom.

"Would everybody please just shut up?" A voice came from the smoke and said smoke dissipated to reveal the first exam proctors.

"Sorry to have kept you waiting. My name is Morino Ibiki. I'm the proctor and chief examiner for the first part of the exam." One of the proctors said, he had several scars on his face and a black jacket over his jonin vest and he wore his Konoha Hitai-ate like a bandana.

'_I can't quite put my finger on it, but something about him reminds me of Zabuza-sensei!'_ Naruto thought as Ibiki pointed at the three Oto-nins.

"You… the kids from Oto! You can't carry on any way you please when the exam's about to start! Or do you want to be disqualified?" Ibiki said.

"Sorry, sir… it's our first exam, and we got a little carried away." The Oto-nin that had attacked Kabuto earlier said.

"Is that so? Then it's high time that someone laid down a few ground rules. From this point forward, there will be no more fighting without the express permission of the examining officer… and even if that permission is granted, anything that dangers another applicant's life is strictly forbidden. Any of you little piglets who break that rule are out. Disqualified. No second chances. Got that?" Ibiki said.

'_Now I know why he reminds me of Zabuza-sensei, they're both scary!' _Naruto thought.

"So this is a test for little girly men?" One of the Oto-nins said.

"As you wish. The first part of the selection exam is about to commence. Turn in your written applications, take one of these seating assignment cards…" Ibiki said before he held up a card with the number "1" on it "And report directly to the seat indicated. When everyone's seated, we'll pass on the written part of the test."

Everyone was given seating assignment cards and papers before taking a seat, each paper had ten questions on them, or rather, they had nine questions on them with the tenth question supposed to be given to them at the last 15 minutes of the test. Everyone also started out with ten points and each time they missed a question, they would lose a point and if one member of a team would miss all questions then the entire team would be disqualified. Also if someone were caught cheating 5 times then they and their entire team would be disqualified.

As the test started, several people found out that the test was too hard for your everyday genin, so the solution was obvious. The test wasn't to test their intellect, it was to test their ability at intelligence gathering, in other words, they were supposed to cheat without getting caught.

Sakura and Takimaru were smart enough to get through the test without cheating, Sasuke used the Sharingan to copy the movements of the guy in front of him, Naruto had managed to create a clone which hid in the roomabove and looked down through a pair of eye-holes, Ino used her family's secret Hijutsu to borrow Sakura's body for a little while to check all of the answers and afterwards, she did the same to her two teammates in order to give them all the answers as well, Hinata and Neji used the Byakugan to see through the ones in front of them, Akamaru watched the answers on the others that sat around Kiba and told his master everything, Shino and Fu used their insects to get the answers, Gaara used his "opening of the third eye" to spy on the papers of others, and all the others found various ways to cheat, though many was caught and thrown out.

'_Now that we've weeded out the worst of the slackers… let's move on to the most important question. 45 minutes have passed. The time has come.'_ Ibiki thought before saying "All right! Here it comes. Get ready for the tenth question."

'_So, let's see what this so called tenth question's all about!'_ Naruto thought.

"And before we get to the question itself… I'm adding one more new rule." Ibiki said, but before he could say any more, Kankuro – who had gone to the bathroom to ask his puppet, who he had disguised as one of the proctors about the answers – came back.

"Heh… looks like you're in luck. The time you've spent playing with dolls hasn't been completely wasted." Ibiki said.

'_Dolls… does he know about scarecrow?'_ Kankuro thought as he walked back to his seat, handing a note with all the answers on it to Temari as he passed her.

"Let me explain. This rule… is absolute." Ibiki said.

Konoha, jonin lounge

Kakashi, Zabuza, Asuma and the sensei for team 8, Yuhi Kurenai were all sitting in the jonin lounge, talking.

"Wow… with our subordinates tied up in exams, we've got time on our hands." Kakashi said.

"Don't worry. We'll be busy again before you know it." Asuma said while sighing.

"Why?" Kakashi asked.

"Word is, this year's first chief examination officer is Morino Ibiki-san." Asuma said, and this caught Zabuza's attention.

"Morino Ibiki? Great… they're as good as dead!" He said.

"Why's that?" Kurenai asked.

"He's a master at torture and interrogation! In Kiri, we are told that if we're ever caught by Ibiki, we should commit suicide… we're better off that way!" Zabuza said.

"That's not too farfetched. Konoha ANBU torture and interrogation corps unit leader, jonin commander, Morino Ibiki! In the exam that is presently underway… while there may be no physical torture… there's no doubt that the applicants are being subjected to the psychological pressures that make him infamous as an interrogator." Asuma said.

Ninja academy, room 301

'_An absolute rule?' _Naruto thought, wondering what the rule was.

"First… you must choose… whether to accept or reject this tenth question!" Ibiki said.

'_Accept or reject…? What's he getting at?'_ Fu thought.

"What do you mean choose? What the hell happens if someone doesn't accept the question?" Kurotsuchi asked as she stood up while slamming her hands on the desk.

"If you reject the question and don't even try to answer it, you'll lose all your points immediately… and fail! And both of your teammates will fail right along with you." Ibiki said.

"Say what?" Shibuki yelled.

"Then why would anyone reject it?" Kurotsuchi's blond teammate yelled.

"Because… of the other rule." Ibiki said.

'_Oh, come on. What more can he add?'_ Sakura thought.

"If you try to answer the question… and you get it wrong… you will never be permitted to apply for the chunin exams again. Not ever." Ibiki said.

"You can't be serious. That's ridiculous! There are ninja here who've sat for the chunin exams more than once already! We know there are!" Kiba yelled while Akamaru barked and Ibiki started laughing.

"Just your rotten luck. I wasn't making the rules in past years. I am now. I've been up front with you. You can take a failing grade now, and try again later. Anyone who has doubts would be smart to reject the tenth question right now. Come back and reapply next year, and the year after that." Ibiki said.

'_Man, talk about a no-win situation! If even one member of a team rejects the question, then all three team members fail the exam. If anyone accepts the question, but can't answer it however, then he'll be stuck at genin level for the rest of his life! I'd rather stop being a ninja than being stuck with D and C-ranked missions for the rest of my life.' _Takimaru thought.

"Ready? Then let's begin. Those who choose not to accept should raise their hands. Once their number has been confirmed, they will leave the room." Ibiki said and during the next few minutes, several teams rejected the question.

Konoha, jonin lounge

"That Ibiki-san… understands the human heart completely. It's what makes him so terrible. He uses his insights mercilessly to manipulate his foes… bringing their human weaknesses to the surface… and using those weaknesses to make them crack! Trickery is no defense against his skills as an interrogator." Asuma said.

"I wouldn't count all of them out just yet, I personally trained Naruto and I know that he won't crack easily!" Zabuza said.

"Maybe… or maybe you don't know Ibiki-san as well as you thought you did!" Asuma said.

Ninja academy, room 301

Naruto suddenly raised his hand before slamming it right back down on the desk.

"Never underestimate me! I don't quit, and I won't run! I'll accept your stupid question! Even if I risk ending up a genin for the rest of my life… I'll still become Hokage, even if I can only make it by pure stubbornness. I don't care! I'm not afraid of you" He yelled, inspiring the rest of the genin in the room to stay as well.

'_He… never even gave us a thought. But he certainly does have guts.'_ Sasuke thought.

"I'll ask you one last time. This is a decision that could affect the rest of your life. Quit now while still have the chance." Ibiki said.

"I never go back on my word. That's my nindo!" Naruto said.

'_84 of them are still here. Hm… an entertaining kid. And interesting. He dispelled everyone else's doubts along with his own. More than I expected but… there's no point in dragging it out. Thanks to him… no one else will quit."_ Ibiki thought before he looked towards the other proctors and they all gave affirmative nods.

"Good call. So everyone who is still here…" Ibiki said and all of the genin that were still in the room prepared themselves for what was to come "… you've just passed the first exam!"

"What do you mean, "passed"? What happened to the tenth question?" Takimaru asked and Ibiki grinned.

"There is no tenth question… beyond the whole "accept or reject" thing." Ibiki said.

"Hey! Then what was the whole deal with the other nine questions? That was a total waste of our time!" Kurotsuchi yelled.

"There was no waste. Those questions had a purpose, which they've already served." Ibiki said.

"Such as?" Temari asked.

"Our goal was to test your skills… at spying!" Ibiki said.

'_He seems like a completely different person.'_ Fu thought before saying "Our skills at spying?"

"Remember the rules at the beginning? You pass or fail as part of a three-man team. With that rule, I pressured you with the fear that anything you did wrong would bring your teammates down with you. However… the questions are beyond the level that genin could be expected to handle. So most of you… having reached that same conclusion had only one way of retaining your points, by cheating. In other words… we set up the test on the assumption you'd cheat. And, to ensure there would be suitable targets for you to cheat from, we snuck in a pair of ringers… two chunin who already knew all the answers." Ibiki said.

"It took me forever to figure out who they were!" A ninja behind Naruto said.

"Oh, yeah. Me too." A ninja behind him again said.

"Of course, anyone who cheated in a clumsy or obvious way… failed." Ibiki said as he took of his Hitai-ate to show that he had burn scars and puncture wounds all over the top of his head and he continued "Because there may be circumstances where being caught in an act of espionage can cost you more than just your life. You pay in ways that can be taken from you little by little, time and time again, when many lives hang in the balance."

'_Burn scars… punctures from where screws were used… long slash marks… he's been tortured!'_ Sasuke thought.

'_Cool… I bet his hands are even worse! But that's what he gets for being dumb enough to get captured. It'll never happen to me!' _One of the Oto-nins thought.

'_Our interrogation corps could learn a few things from whoever tortured him! Maybe I should tell jiji?' _Kurotsuchi thought before Ibiki took his Hitai-ate back on.

"The information you obtain can't be trusted… if you can't keep your presence secret from the enemy. Learn that and learn it well. If you bring back intelligence from a suspect source or a compromised operation… you're doing your enemies' work for them, putting those you serve in danger. That is why we maneuvered you into using your espionage skills to cheat. It was the quickest way of weeding out the students whose skills aren't yet up to stuff." Ibiki explained.

"You've still haven't told us what the deal with the tenth question is!" Fu said.

"Ah! The tenth question… was the first real test on the exam." Ibiki said.

"What on earth do you mean?" Sakura asked.

"Let me explain… the tenth question was a choice between two options that were both difficult and dangerous. Those who chose to reject were failed, and their friends along with them. Those who chose to accept and couldn't answer the question… lost any chance of ever even trying again. It was a nasty, unfair, no-win set of options. So why do I present them? Let's suppose you all go on to successfully attain the rank of chunin. You are assigned to steal a vital enemy document… knowing nothing about the skills, deployment, or military preparedness of your foe. You may have to cross a territory that has been heavily mined and set with traps. Now… do you accept your mission? Or do you reject it… rather than place your own life – or the life of your companions – in jeopardy? Could any chunin get away with only taking on the safe jobs? Of course not! No matter how dangerous the risk… there will be missions that you cannot decline. A ninja must demonstrate valor that inspires those around him… helping all to overcome their fear. This is the talent that we most value in the commander of a chunin team! Those who can't gamble with their own fate… who would trade today's certain risk for tomorrow's uncertain future… never taking the chance that lies before them are weaklings who make only weak decisions. In my opinion, they don't belong in the ranks of the chunin at all! By choosing to accept, you answered the almost-insoluble tenth question correctly. If you keep that spirit, you can probably conquer all of the many doubts and difficulties you'll face. You've passed the first hurdle. Part one of the chunin selection exam is now concluded. I'll pray you fight the good fight!" Ibiki explained.

Suddenly, something crashed through the window and four kunais were imbedded into the walls of the room to reveal that it was a banner and in front of it stood a woman. On the banner it said "Newly arrived second chief examination officer Mitarashi Anko".

She had black hair in a ponytail, wore a light-brown jacket with a fishnet shirt underneath and she wore her Konoha Hitai-ate on her forehead.

"None of you are in any position to celebrate. I am the second examination officer Mitarashi Anko! Times a-wastin', people. Let's go! Follow me!" Anko yelled.

"Can't you read the mood in here?" Ibiki asked as he stepped out from behind the banner.

'_This new officer almost reminds me… of Naruto… before he got the Rinnegan.'_ Sakura thought as Anko noticed something.

"84 of you are still here? Ibiki! You passed 28 teams? Obviously you went way too easy on them." Anko said.

"This year… we have applicants of exceptional caliber." Ibiki said.

"Yeah, right. I'll cut down the number by half before the next test is done." Anko said.

'_Cut us down by half? Man, now I really don't wanna know what the second exam is!' _Takimaru thought.

"Ooh! I get charged up just thinking about it! I'll explain things in detail as soon as we move to our next location… so follow me!" Anko said before she led all of the genin to were the second exam would be.

Konoha, training field 44 a.k.a Forest of Death

Everyone was standing outside of the fence that went around the forest, waiting for the proctor to tell them what the test was.

The test this time was first-and-foremost a survival test, each team was given either a heaven or an earth scroll and they would have to forcibly take the opposite scroll from one of the other teams and bring both scrolls to the tower at the forest's center without checking their contents and they had to do it within five days. Not to mention that they also had to get past all of the giant carnivorous animals that lived throughout the forest.

"All right, everyone, follow your proctors to your respective gates! When the signal sounds in half an hour, the exam will begin!" Anko yelled after everyone had collected a scroll and each team was taken to one of the many gates in the fence.

"Part two of the chunin selection exam begins… NOW!" she yelled half an hour later and everyone rushed through their respective gates.

Forest of Death, team 8

Three shinobi in black body-suits were jumping through the trees until they heard something and they stopped to look down on team 8 that was standing on the ground below them.

"The tower's where everyone is ultimately going… so we might as well set up traps as close to there as possible." Kiba said before Akamaru picked up the scent of the three ninja that were hiding above them "Found them already, huh? Where are they?"

"Stupid kids… they might as well be shouting, "capture us"! From the sound of things, they know we're somewhere nearby, but they haven't figured out where yet." One of the unknown ninja said before he suddenly felt something on his neck.

"What's wrong? You're as white as a sheet." One of his partners said before noticing a leech that was on the guy's neck and all three looked up to see several other leeches, coming down. The three of them tried to force the leeches off them, but to no avail and they fell down to the ground.

"The flying leeches of Konoha village can sense perspiration and body heat and fling themselves en masse! If you can't get them off your body within five minutes, you're finished. And if you panic trying to get away from them… well… one team down!" Kiba said as one of the three enemy ninja triggered a booby-trap that had been set up by team 8 earlier and the three was trapped in a net, hanging from a tree together with the flying leeches.

What team 8 didn't notice however was that they were being spied on by another team, Fu's team.

"Think we should attack?" Shibuki asked.

"No, not yet. They've got the advantage in this place!" Fu said before looking at Takimaru "Keep the Genjutsu protecting us going, we'll attack them as soon as we can get an advantage, Takimaru-kun you take the Hyuga, her Byakugan will be useless against you! And Shibuki-kun I'll leave the Inuzuka to you, while I'll take on the Aburame!"

Forest of Death, team 7

Team 7 walked through the forest, hoping to come across a team with an earth scroll and it seemed they were in luck.

"Well, would you look at that? The last of the Uchiha!" The three turned to see the three Iwa-nins.

"And you are…?" Sasuke asked.

"Meet Kurotsuchi-san, granddaughter of Tsuchikage-sama!" Kurotsuchi's blond teammate said.

"And these are my teammates, Akatsuchi and Bakutsuchi!" Kurotsuchi said, gesturing to her two teammates respectively.

"Well, I'm Uchiha Sasuke and these are my teammates, Uzumaki Naruto and Haruno Sakura!" Sasuke said.

"We know who you are Uchiha, and we're gonna prove once and for all that Iwa is – and always will be – stronger than you Konoha tree-huggers!" Kurotsuchi said.

"Hey Sasuke, what do you say? I'll take the girl and you get one of the others, while Sakura-chan takes the last one?" Naruto asked.

"Sure, but are you sure that you can handle her?" Sasuke asked.

"Sure? Are you kidding me? She's toast!" Naruto said.

"Hey, who said that you could decide who fights who without us?" Kurotsuchi yelled.

"Just play along with them for now Kurotsuchi-san, I'll take the Uchiha and make sure that it'd be enough of him for you afterwards!" Bakutsuchi said.

"No, you'll take the girl and Akatsuchi'll take on Uchiha!" Kurotsuchi said.

"What? But I wa…" Bakutsuchi started, but Kurotsuchi quickly cut him off.

"You haven't unlocked your Kekkei Genkai yet, remember? You won't stand a chance against Uchiha right now!" Kurotsuchi said.

"Fine." Bakutsuchi said.

"Alright, Sakura-chan, you'll take the one to the right, and Sasuke, you'll take the one to the left! Let's go!" Naruto said and they charged at their respective targets.

Bakutsuchi got out a kunai and threw it at Sakura, but she easily dodged it however, the explosive tag wrapped to the kunai caught fire and she quickly weaved a sequence of hand signs before the kunai blew up and when the smoke cleared there was only the remains of a log lying there.

'_Kawarimi…!"_ Bakutsuchi thought before he sensed something approaching him and he ducked just in time to avoid three senbon that had been thrown at him.

"Katon: Goukakyo no jutsu." Sasuke called out the name of his attack and a large fire ball was shot towards Akatsuchi.

"Doton: Doryuheki no jutsu." Akatsuchi said and a wall of earth suddenly rose up from the ground and blocked the fire ball.

Sasuke then got out a kunai with an explosive tag attached to it and threw it at the earth wall, so that it was destroyed when the kunai blew up, but then came a large rock – that seemed to have arms and even a head – and it moved in to punch Sasuke.

"Futon: Kamikaze no jutsu." Naruto said and he blew a powerful gust of wind at the Iwa kunoichi.

"Katon: Ryuka no jutsu." Kurotsuchi then fired a dragon made out of fire at Naruto and it was greatly strengthened by Naruto's Kamikaze.

"Suiton: Suiryudan no jutsu." A water dragon then came out of a nearby pool and when straight through the wind-strengthened fire and hit Kurotsuchi.

Forest of Death, team 8 and team Fu

Fu looked down on the three members of team 8 that were oblivious to her presence, which most people would consider strange considering that Shino's insects would react immediately on Fu's presence and Genjutsu don't work on bugs. But this case is different; Takimaru's clan uses Genjutsu that is strong enough to even fool one-celled organisms, and the best part is that only they can use it due to their Dojutsu.

Kiba, Shino and Hinata stopped when a thick mist suddenly covered the area.

"What the…? Where'd this mist come from?" Kiba asked before looking at Hinata, though he was only barely able to see her "Hinata!"

"Already on it. Byakugan!" Hinata said as she activated her Kekkei Genkai.

'_It's no use, Takimaru-kun's Genjutsu mist is impossible to see through, even for the all-seeing Byakugan!'_ Fu thought.

"There, I see one over there, and there's another one in that direction and the third one's over there!" Hinata said, pointing in three different directions towards where she thought she saw the enemies and the three of them split up to take them on individually.

Kiba punched what looked like a person, but after he had punched it he saw that it was only… a tree? Shino punched what he thought was a person, but it wasn't, instead it was a boulder. Hinata used a palm strike on what she thought was a person – and the Byakugan even confirmed it – but instead it was a tree.

"What the…? Hey what's going on here?" Kiba asked before he turned around and yelled "Hey, Hinata. I thought you said that there was someone here!"

"There w-was, I don't get it, m-maybe… it's s-some kind of Genjutsu!" Hinata yelled back.

"That, doesn't make any sense, your Byakugan would've seen through it and besides Genjutsu don't work on my insects!" Shino yelled.

"Oh, the Hyuga's spot on, you're under the influence of Takimaru-kun's Genjutsu mist! Nothing can see through it and it can fool one-celled organisms, so a simple insect is no big deal!" Fu's voice came through the mist, apparently coming from all sides.

"Hey, where are you? Show yourself!" Kiba yelled, not only did the mist make Hinata's Byakugan and Shino's insects useless, Kiba's and Akamaru's noses were also useless, they were at a total disadvantage.

"Sorry, but I'm your opponent, not Fu-san!" Kiba turned around to see Shibuki approaching him and the mist around them cleared to make a small arena.

"Heh, you've got to be crazy if you think you can beat me!" Kiba said confidently.

"I don't know about that. After all, you're the ones who got trapped in our trap and you didn't even notice that we've been following you three ever since we entered this forest!" Shibuki said.

'_What…? How could we not have noticed them?' _Kiba wondered.

"In case you're wondering how you didn't notice us, simple… Takimaru's Genjutsu!" Shibuki said as though he had read Kiba's thoughts.

Hinata was looking around; trying to find whoever's casting the Genjutsu, if she could take him out, then the Genjutsu would be broken.

"Looking for me?" Someone behind her asked and she jumped in surprise before turning around to face him as the mist cleared around them to make a small arena.

He had shoulder length brown hair, glowing, red eyes, and he wore a green t-shirt with a red circle on the back that almost resembled an eye and the Taki insignia was on the front. He also wore blue pants and had his Taki Hitai-ate wrapped around his waist.

"Man, I can't believe that she made me fight a girl!" Takimaru said.

Shino brought out his insects, Fu was standing in front of him – in the small clearing in the mist – with a smile on her face, since Sino was an Aburame, this would be a complete mismatch because insects pretty much worships her or rather, they worship her tenant, but she'd still be able to turn any of Shino's insects against him.

Forest of Death, team 7 and team Kurotsuchi

"Yoton: Sekkaigyo no jutsu." Kurotsuchi called out before spitting quicklime at Naruto and it hit said blond's feet as well as the ground around him as Kurotsuchi went through several hand signs.

"Suiton: Mizurappa." She called out before spitting a lot of water on the quicklime, making it harden within a matter of seconds.

'_Yoton? Maybe she could have taught me this if we'd met under different circumstances.'_ Naruto thought as he channeled Ice chakra through his feet, freezing the quicklime and he managed to break himself free to Kurotsuchi's shock.

"How did you…?" Kurotsuchi asked.

"Let me show you!" Naruto said before weaving a series of hand signs "Hyoton: Sensatsu suisho."

The water from Kurotsuchi's Mizuranpa went into the air and froze into needles of ice and said needles flew at Kurotsuchi and she went through several hand signs.

"Earth style: Earth dome jutsu."** (A/N: I don't know its Japanese name and I didn't find anything on the wiki, so I'll just go with the English name!)** Kurotsuchi called out and she slammed her hands down on the ground and suddenly came a dome of earth up around her, protecting her from the needles.

"Futon: Daitoppa no jutsu." A female voice called out and suddenly, a large vortex of wind was shot at them, Sasuke, Akatsuchi, Sakura and Bakutsuchi managed to get out of the way in time, but Naruto and Kurotsuchi weren't able to dodge and they were blown away by the powerful winds.

Chapter preview

Bakutsuchi "Uh… what's with this chick? How can she be so strong?"

Lee "This is some kind of illusion, right? So, I'd be wasting my time ducking as though your attacks were real. I've seen you use these moves before."

Choji "Hey! Sasuke and Naruto are unconscious! And Sakura's defending them."

Shikamaru _'Oh, no you don't! Since you've been the biggest pain in everybody's ascot…'_

Kurotsuchi "Pretty eyes, by the way!"

Fu "Next time on Naruto: Rinnegan Jinchuriki: Konoha and Iwa… join forces?"

Orochimaru "In time Sasuke-kun will search me out for power!"

Character status

Naruto: Power level: 30

Techniques: Henge, Kawarimi, Oiroke, Harem, Kage Bunshin, Suiton: Suiryudan, Doton: Moguragakure, Futon: Kamikaze, Hyoton: Sensatsu suisho.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Kekkei Genkai: Rinnegan, Hyoton.

Sasuke: Power level: 30

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi, Katon: Goukakyo, Katon: Housenka.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Kekkei Genkai: Sharingan.

Sakura: Power level: 15

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi.

Weapons: senbon.

Rock Lee: Power level: 25

Techniques: Konoha Senpou, Kagebuyo, Omote Renge, Konoha Reppu, Konoha Daisenpu.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Kurotsuchi: Power level: 30

Techniques: Katon: Ryuka, Suiton: Mizurappa, Doton: Doryuso, Earth style: Earth dome, Yoton: Sekkaigyo.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken, sword.

Kekkei Genkai: Yoton.

Akatsuchi: Power level: 25

Techniques: Doton: Doryuheki, Doton: Goremu.

Weapons: none

Bakutsuchi: Power level: 20

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi.

Weapons: kunai, bombs.

Kekkei Genkai: unknown (not unlocked yet).

**A/N: Things seem to be heating up, with three Jinchuriki's in the exams, some crazy and bloodthirsty proctors and Iwa sending three applicants. Who'll move on to become chunin? Who'll remain genin? And who is attacking Naruto's and Kurotsuchi's teams and how will this affect the relationship between Konoha and Iwa? Maybe you'll find out in the next chapter or maybe not… probably not! Yes, as you may have realized, Takimaru's Dojutsu is the same as Ranmaru's and that whole thing with Genjutsu strong enough to fool one-celled organisms was entirely my own idea. Also Takimaru is even smarter than Shikamaru, if you can believe that!**


	4. Konoha and Iwa join forces?

**Naruto: Rinnegan Jinchuriki**

**Chunin exam arc**

**Kurama no Kyubi:** From now on, the Author's Note at the start and end of each chapter will be like this, so I will be answering any questions that you might have. Also I'll be concentrating on just one story until I'm done with the current arc on that story. But if I'm still not done with the arc after a full month has passed, I'll go over to the next story regardless. Also, if I'm in the middle of a chapter when the 30/31 day time-limit expires, I'll not go over to the next story unless I finish with that chapter first. Now on to the reviews.

**god of all:** Great chapter and story so far please continue this story soon.

**Kurama no Kyubi:** Thanks.

**shodaimeuzukage17:** updateeeeee also naruto should get the rajin and a special sword for wind

**Kurama no Kyubi:** I'll think about it.

**Damix96:** interesting storyline

**Kurama no Kyubi:** Thanks.

**bankai777:** naruto should be paired up with either fu or please no hinata that has been done before.

**Kurama no Kyubi:** Don't worry, he won't be paired with anyone from Konoha.

**crossoverfanofanime:** PLEASE make the pairing narutoxfuu(the green haired nanabi jinchuriki) it is rare to see a good pairing with those two. Also naruto with rinnegan sounds neat

**Kurama no Kyubi:** Yeah, a pairing with those two is pretty rare and I am kinda a fan of that pairing myself, so who knows? Maybe she's the one he'll end up with.

**Ccebling2:** Have Naruto get a harem, I even came up with some girls for it they are Kin, Fu, Kurotsuchi, Tayuya, and Temari. I'll try to come up with more girls for it.

**Kurama no Kyubi: **If I am giving Naruto more than one girl for this story, two will be the limit.

**bankai777:** my guess is that naruto will either be paired up with fu or kurotsuchi.i hope that it's fu at least she can understand naruto namikaze for being a jinchuriki.

**Kurama no Kyubi:** Who knows? It might be both of them, or it might be none of them.

**crossoverfanofanime:** good chapter, and the priview was also great! and the way you intrduced fu was PERFECT! and orochimaru, tsk tsk.. trouble.

**Kurama no Kyubi:** Yep, this spells trouble.

**schinken:** i dont know if it is interressed but nagato was not able to react in the fight with naruto where one of his paths was in the mouth of the toad(naruto was in there too) adn what you wrote is true, while in his summon he was able to see but its proparbly from the ability of the rinnegan to share the vision of nagato, his paths and his summons instead of allowing to see through matter but good chapter

**Kurama no Kyubi:** I got quite a few reviews on this topic, but I'll only respond to this one 'cause it was the first one. After having thought it over a little, I see that you're definitely right, so I'm going to change how Naruto cheats in the first exam. I might not do it right away though, but I'll definitely get it done before the next update.

**joesly25:** Not bad good story is naruto going know Mokuton?

**Kurama no Kyubi:** Well, yes, definitely. He'll just have to find a teacher first.

**Guest:** Doton: DOURYUUHEIKI

**Kurama no Kyubi:** I suppose that you're talking about the Earth Dome jutsu and how I didn't know its Japanese name, right? Well you're kinda wrong there, Doryuheki is Earth WALL not Earth DOME! Not the same technique.

"Rinnegan." Normal speech

'_Rinnegan.'_ Normal thought

"**Rinnegan." Biju speech**

'_**Rinnegan.' **_**Biju thought**

**Disclaimer:** All I own is this computer and the plot.

Chapter 3: Konoha and Iwa… join forces?

Bakutsuchi was hiding behind a tree, occasionally looking out to see if whoever attacked them was there, but the coast seemed to be clear and after a while, he finally gathered up the courage to go and see if he could find his two teammates.

"Hey, Kurotsuchi-san, Akatsuchi, where are you?" He called out, but there was no response.

Bakutsuchi didn't notice Sakura, who was hiding behind a tree, senbon at the ready in case she'd be found.

"You know, I might get the wrong idea if you keep hiding from me like this!" A voice said from behind her and she turned around to see Bakutsuchi standing there "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were scared of me!"

"Why would I be scared of you?" Sakura asked.

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Bakutsuchi asked.

"Hey, Bakutsuchi-san!" Bakutsuchi and Sakura looked towards where the voice came from to see Akatsuchi.

'_Oh, great. Now there's two of them, I just hope that the third one don't show up!' _Sakura thought.

"Hey, Bakutsuchi-san, I've been searching all over for you. Huh?" Akatsuchi said as he came over to them before he started looking around "Where's Kurotsuchi-san? And what's she doing here?"

"I don't know where Kurotsuchi-san is. And it seems that the tree-huggers might have gotten separated from each other as well!" Bakutsuchi said.

"Hey, I've got a good idea, why don't we cooperate for now, until we've located our missing teammates!" Sakura suggested.

"WHAT, WHY ON EARTH SHOULD WE TEAM-UP WITH YOU?" Bakutsuchi yelled.

"It sounds like a good idea to me!" Akatsuchi said.

"What? You can't be serious." Bakutsuchi said.

"And besides, whoever attacked us, was strong enough to separate us so easily. We might need their help to defeat him or her!" Akatsuchi said.

Forest of Death, Sasuke

Sasuke was hiding under some bushes, but when he heard some footsteps behind him, he got up on his feet and turned around to see Sakura.

"Sasuke-kun!" She yelled.

"Sakura…" Sasuke said just as Bakutsuchi and Akatsuchi walked out from behind a tree.

"And don't forget about us!" Bakutsuchi said and Sasuke immediately drew a kunai.

"Sakura, what are you doing with them? Or are you Kurotsuchi in disguise?" Sasuke asked.

"Nah… it's your girlfriend, alright!" Bakutsuchi said, but Sasuke – ignoring the tease – wasn't convinced.

"We only decided to work together till we've found Naruto and Kurotsuchi!" Sakura said.

"Not to mention the guy that attacked us. Safety in numbers, y'know?" Bakutsuchi said.

"Yow… are you guys all right?" The five turned towards the voice to see Naruto coming towards them, but Sasuke thought that something was off.

"Naruto… remove the sunglasses!" Sasuke said and Sakura was shocked at what her teammate had just said, if Naruto would remove the sunglasses here then Bakutsuchi-san and Akatsuchi-san would see the Rinnegan.

"Sasuke-kun, are you crazy? If Naruto removes his sunglasses now then…" But she was cut off by Sasuke.

"Don't worry, Sakura! I know what I'm doing!" Naruto then removed the sunglasses to reveal… cerulean blue eyes? What the hell happened to the Rinnegan?

"Busted!" Sasuke simply stated and he threw a kunai at Naruto, but said blond dodged it easily.

"Heh, well done!" Naruto said before being engulfed in a puff of smoke and when said smoke cleared he had been switched out with a woman with long, black hair, a weird hat on her head and she had a Kusa Hitai-ate on her forehead "What gave me away?"

"You were way off with the eyes!" Sasuke said.

"Strange, and according to that Kabuto guy's card, he has blue eyes, so what did I do wrong?" The woman said.

"Well, let's just say that the picture on that card was a little… outdated!" Sasuke said.

"Outdated? How can someone change the colour of their eyes?" Bakutsuchi asked.

"Don't worry about it! Now then, shall we begin?" Sasuke said as the woman took of her hat.

Forest of Death, Naruto and Kurotsuchi

By the roots of one of the large trees of the forest were Naruto and Kurotsuchi lying… in a VERY suggestive position. Kurotsuchi was lying with her back to the ground, facing up while Naruto was lying on top of her, facing down. In fact one could almost think that they were kissing, except for the fact that they were still unconscious, but that was about to change.

At the same time, both of them opened their eyes, ringed purple met pinkish black and they immediately jumped away from each other while coughing, trying to get the taste out of their mouths.

"What happened?" Kurotsuchi asked after an awkward silence.

"Someone attacked us with a Futon jutsu!" Naruto said as he turned around.

"Thanks for stating the obvious!" Kurotsuchi said sarcastically before she noticed Naruto's eyes "Pretty eyes, by the way!"

"What…" Naruto said as he brought his hand up to see if the sunglasses where there, but they weren't and he looked down to see the sunglasses lying on the ground… shattered!

"What's with them anyway? Is it some kind of Dojutsu?" Kurotsuchi asked.

"Um, y-yeah…" Naruto said as he nervously scratched the back of his head while also looking down on the ground.

"Cool, so what are they called anyway?" Kurotsuchi asked.

"Sorry, but that's classified!" Naruto said as he turned away from her with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Oh, come on, can't you just tell me?" Kurotsuchi asked, if Konoha had gotten themselves a new Dojutsu then she'd have to tell jiji. Plus, she was pretty excited herself about finding out its name.

"Are you stupid or something? Only a few in Konoha even knows about these eyes, and you expect me to tell you? An Iwa-nin?" Naruto said just before a shadow came over them and they looked up to see a giant snake.

"Where'd that thing come from?" Kurotsuchi asked.

"How am I supposed to know?" Naruto asked before the snake charged at them, attempting to eat the two, but they jumped away and both weaved a series of hand signs.

"Yoton: Sekkaigyo no jutsu." Kurotsuchi called out and she spat a lot of quicklime at the snake's mouth.

"Suiton: Suiryudan no jutsu." Naruto called out and a dragon of water came out of a nearby pool and hit the quicklime, making it harden.

"You know? I kinda feel sorry for the guy." Kurotsuchi said as she looked up at the snake which was desperately trying to open its mouth, but to no avail.

"Now, to find the others." Naruto said as he activated the eyes and he looked around before gasping.

"What is it?" Kurotsuchi asked.

"So much chakra… there's no way that's a Genin!" Naruto said before jumping onto a branch and continuing towards the massive amounts of chakra that he saw, while Kurotsuchi followed him.

Forest of Death, team 7 and team Kurotsuchi

Sasuke, Sakura, Bakutsuchi and Akatsuchi was standing in front of the Kusa-nin that had attempted to lure them into a false sense of security by pretending to be Naruto, though it didn't go so well considering that she didn't know about Naruto's Rinnegan.

"I suppose you two Konoha-nins would like to steal our earth scroll, wouldn't you…? Since you've already got a heaven scroll!" The Kusa-nin said as she held the scroll in front of the four Genin before she actually showed it down her mouth and swallowed it "Now… shall we see… just who shall be stealing scrolls from whom? We'll fight to the death!"

The Kusa-nin then sent a wave of killing intent at them and the four Genin even saw their own deaths at the Kusa-nin's hands. And the four collapsed down on their knees and Sasuke vomited.

'… _She's casting… a Genjutsu! It's not… death… just an incredible simulation! I looked into her eyes… and she made me feel it… and believe it! Wh-who the heck is she…?"_ Sasuke thought.

'_Oh, crud. This is so not my day! Kurotsuchi-san where the heck are you?' _Bakutsuchi thought.

'_Crud! If we don't retreat now… we're finished! The only other option is death!'_ Sasuke thought.

'_Oh, c'mon. Move body, move!'_ Bakutsuchi thought as he tried to get a kunai from his pouch.

"Heh… I imagine you're quite paralyzed by now…" The Kusa-nin said as she got four kunais out of her pouch.

'_Not quite… I can move… just enough!' _Sasuke and Bakutsuchi thought at the same time before the Kusa-nin threw her kunais and both Sasuke and Bakutsuchi stabbed a kunai into their leg and jumped to save their respective teammate.

'_Amazing! They stabbed themselves so that they would be able to focus on the pain and block out fear and illusion! Heh… just as I thought, there is far more to them than to the common prey!' _The Kusa-nin thought.

Forest of Death, Team 8 and team Fu

Kiba vs Shibuki

"Tsuuga!" Kiba called out as he spun through the mist, towards where he thought his opponent to be, only to smash through a rock.

"Great, another illusion. Only if my nose would work properly." He muttered to himself, it seemed that not only was the mist tricking Hinata's Byakugan, but also Kiba's nose and Shino's insects.

"Mizu no Tatsumaki!" Suddenly a vortex of water formed right next to Kiba. The Inuzuka was then knocked out by the spinning vortex before it vanished and Shibuki came out from where it was and began searching the Inuzuka for the scroll.

Hinata vs Takimaru

Hinata hit yet another tree with her Juken. She wondered – of course – how it was that a Genjutsu could beat her Byakugan like this, it didn't seem possible.

Suddenly three kunai – all having explosive tags attached to them – flew down and embedded themselves in the ground near where the Hyuga was standing, and she jumped away just before the tags blew up.

Hinata then looked towards the branch that the kunai had come from and jumped up before hitting what seemed to be the silhouette of a person before she realized that it was a tree she had hit. Her eyes then widened as she turned around, realizing that it was a trap, but she was too late as she felt that someone hit her, hard and she fell unconscious.

Shino vs Fu

'_Hmmm. My insects appears to be useless in this mist, I have to find a way out of it, and fast.'_ Shino thought before a he noticed a stream of insects flying at him. He then dodged the bugs only for them to vanish, and in their place was three shuriken.

'_Shuriken? So, she's using the mist to her advantage. Letting it fool me into thinking that her shuriken and kunai are insects.'_ He thought before some red particles appeared in the air and the mist faded to reveal that the three Taki-nins were gone, and both Kiba and Hinata were unconscious.

"Ah. Kiba! Hinata!" He yelled before running over to them.

Forest of Death, team 7 and team Kurotsuchi

Sasuke, Sakura, Bakutsuchi and Akatsuki were currently up in the trees hoping that the one that attacked them earlier wouldn't find them.

"Speak to me, Sas…" Sakura started, but Sasuke put his hand over her mouth.

'_We've got to move fast, or she'll find us again. The question is how to evade her… um… um… How do we run…? Um…'_ The Uchiha thought.

'_Sasuke-kun is so jumpy… I've never seen him like this…'_ Sakura thought before she noticed a large snake coming down and staring at Sasuke.

"Yikes. Snake!" Akatsuchi said as he saw the snake as well. The four then jumped in different directions and the snake followed Sasuke.

'_Whoa… My chakra is so out of whack, I overlooked a giant snake.'_ Sasuke thought before the snake hissed and the Uchiha almost saw the woman that had attacked them when he looked at the snake.

"Yaaaah! Get lost!" He yelled as he threw several shuriken into the snake's head before said snake fell down, dead. Suddenly, the Kusa-nin came up, out of the snake's skin.

"For shame, letting your guard down. Stay on your toes, like a good prey should. It makes the chase so much more rewarding… for the predatory!" She said before slithering up the tree towards Sasuke like a snake, but suddenly came several shuriken and kunai flying down and they embedded themselves into the trunk right in front of the Kusa-nin.

"Sorry, we're late!" Everyone then looked up to see Naruto and Kurotsuchi standing on a branch.

"Sweet! Naruto, that was awesome!" Sakura shouted.

"Kurotsuchi-san!" Bakutsuchi yelled before saying "Great, now we should be able to win this." And Akatsuchi nodded.

"Naruto and Kurotsuchi to the rescue, huh? You're completely psyched to be saving the day… but… now would be a good time to run for your lives! This guy is way out of our league!" Sasuke said.

"Heh heh… my compliments on your stunning defeat of the giant snake… Naruto-kun… Kurotsuchi-chan." The Kusa-nin said before noticing Naruto's eyes and her eyes widened as she thought '_Those eyes. They're the same as his… the Rinnegan. Kukukuku, this might prove to be a little more fun than I expected.'_

'_This chick's a freak. She's a woman… but all I can see when I look at her is a snake. Everything about her… snakey. I'll bet that snake was hers.'_ Naruto thought before turning to Kurotsuchi "Seems like we've got to cooperate for now."

"Yeah…" Kurotsuchi said before going through a series of hand signs "Katon: Ryuka no jutsu!"

"Futon: Kamikaze no jutsu!" Kurotsuchi's fire and Naruto's wind then combined to make an even bigger flaming dragon head.

The Kusa-nin quickly jumped out of the way and the raging fire destroyed the branch as the dragon head seemingly chewed down on it.

"Alright! Way to go you two!" Sakura yelled before the Kusa-nin suddenly appeared behind Naruto.

"Naruto, look out!" Kurotsuchi said before the Kusa-nin suddenly kicked the blond away before grabbing Kurotsuchi by the neck.

'_If I'm not mistaking, this is the granddaughter of the Tsuchikage. If he were to learn that a Konoha-nin had killed her, then even if my plans would somehow fail, the village would still fall.'_ The Kusa-nin thought.

"Ah. Kurotsuchi-san!" Bakutsuchi yelled before jumping up towards the Kusa-nin with a kunai in his hand, but as he approached the two, the Kusa-nin simply kicked him and was sent flying into a tree before falling down towards the ground before Akatsuchi caught him.

"Ugh… what's with this chick? How can she be so strong?" Bakutsuchi said before passing out.

"Hey, you! Let her go!" Naruto yelled, though he didn't know why he was getting so mad at the Kusa-nin.

He then jumped up as he weaved a series of hand signs.

"Suiton: Suiryudan no jutsu!" He called out before a dragon of water came up from a pool of water that was somewhere below them as the blond weaved more hand signs.

"Hyoton: Sensatsu Suisho!" The water dragon then turned into countless of frozen needles which then headed straight for the Kusa-nin.

The Kusa-nin was then forced to let go of Kurotsuchi as she jumped to avoid the needles before Naruto landed on the branch right in front of Kurotsuchi. As the Kusa-nin looked towards them she noticed that Naruto's eyes had slightly changed, the pupils were now crimson with black, vertical slits in them.

'_So, he's the Kyubi Jinchuriki, eh?'_ She thought before throwing several kunai with explosive tags attached to them towards the two. As the kunai approached them however, Naruto suddenly felt a slight sting in his eyes as they seemed to widen and a shockwave came out from where he and Kurotsuchi were standing, knocking away the kunais and destroying the tree they were standing on as well as several surrounding trees.

Naruto and Kurotsuchi then quickly jumped over to another branch as the tree they were on earlier fell down.

"What was that?" Kurotsuchi asked.

"I-I don't know." Naruto said, barely remembering what had happened during the last minute.

'_Hmmm. It seems like he can't yet control the power of those eyes.'_ The Kusa-nin thought before weaving a series of hand signs and slamming her palms on the branch she herself had jumped over to "Kuchiyose no jutsu!"

In a puff of smoke, a large snake suddenly appeared before bringing its tail down on Naruto and Kurotsuchi, but the two of them jumped out of the way and landed on another branch.

"Let's take out this one the same way we took out that other one." Kurotsuchi said and Naruto nodded before they both weaved a series of hand signs.

"Yoton: Sekkaigyo no jutsu!" Kurotsuchi said as she spat a good amount of quicklime towards the snake.

"Suiton: Suiryudan no jutsu!" Naruto said before a dragon made out of water came up from a pool below them and headed towards the snake.

"They sure make a surprisingly good team." Sakura stated and Akatsuchi nodded.

The quicklime and the water dragon quickly approached the snake, but said snake then brought its tail in front of its head and blocked the attacks.

"Aw, man…! He managed to block it!" Naruto said.

"Thanks for stating the obvious, tree-hugger." Kurotsuchi said.

Naruto then jumped towards the Kusa-nin as he subconsciously channeled chakra into his arm.

"Wait. Naruto, what are you…?" Kurotsuchi said just before the blond delivered a powerful punch to the snake's nose, knocking it backwards.

Suddenly the Kusa-nin's extremely long tongue came down and wrapped itself around Naruto before lifting him up to eye-level with the Kusa-nin.

"HEY! Get off me!" Naruto yelled.

'_Heh heh… the Kyubi brat is still alive and kicking, and he even has the legendary Rinnegan. How fascinating that, when he is consumed with rage, he loses himself… and a bit of the Kyubi trapped within comes through. An amazing development.'_ The Kusa-nin thought as she weaved several hand signs while her tongue raised the blond's jacket to reveal the seal '_There's the proof. The spell that seals the monster within appears on your skin like a tattoo.'_ Small purple flames appeared on her fingertips and she struck Naruto on the stomach, reinforcing the seal.

"Sasuke-kun! Naruto needs your help!" Sakura yelled as Sasuke had only been standing there like a statue the whole time.

'_After being trapped within him for a dozen years… the Kyubi and Naruto's native chakra and psyche have apparently gone from enmity and opposition to coexistence… and are on the very brink of symbiosis. But today you are more trouble than you're worth.'_ The Kusa-nin thought before flinging Naruto away.

'_He's bound to fall!'_ Sakura thought before she threw a kunai while yelling "NARUTO!"

The kunai caught Naruto's jacket and stuck him to a tree. Kurotsuchi then weaved a series of hand signs.

"Doton: Doryuso!" Suddenly, several spikes of earth came out of the ground and shot towards the Kusa-nin, but she simply just dodged them before appearing next to Kurotsuchi and punching her hard enough to knock her out.

"KUROTSUCHI-SAN!" Akatsuchi yelled.

"SASUKE-KUN! Naruto may be nothing like you. And sometimes he's a big nuisance, but at least he's got guts! Naruto's no coward! Right?" Sakura yelled and Sasuke thought back to what his brother had said after murdering the clan.

"Ototou, you're pathetic. If you want to kill me, settle for hating me until you can. Hate me… and live. Live like the coward you are. Clinging to life… without honor."

'_NO!'_ He thought as he activated his Sharingan.

_'Heh heh… it appears that the blood of his ancestors is rising up in this one, demanding action.'_ The Kusa-nin thought.

_'Sasuke-kun!'_ Sakura thought.

_'We'll take our time, so you can show me all your moves!'_ The Kusa-nin thought before dispelling the snake.

Sasuke then took five kunais and what looked like a miniature version of a fuma-shuriken out of his weapons pouch, and he held four of the kunais in his right hand, the miniature fuma-shuriken in his left hand and the last kunai in his mouth.

_'I've been living with the hope of one day killing my older brother. I thought it was the most important thing… but maybe I'm the one who's been the dobe all this time! Naruto… Sakura…!'_ Sasuke thought before he leapt into the air _'… Because someone who can't even stand up and do what has to be done at a time like this… wouldn't stand a chance in a fight against… HIM!'_

Sasuke then threw the kunais he had in his right hand, but the Kusa-nin dodged all of them before the Uchiha grabbed the side of a tree as he threw the miniature fuma-shuriken, but the Kusa-nin dodged that too. Sasuke then took the kunai he had in his mouth as he coated it in chakra and he threw it at the Kusa-nin, but the snake simply sidestepped it.

_'Not bad! The way he anticipates my every move… the accuracy of his targeting… he sees me!'_ The Kusa-nin thought before she noticed wires attached to the shuriken and kunai, with the one that was attached to the shuriken going back to Sasuke so that the said shuriken moved back towards the Kusa-nin _'String?'_

"A Sofushasan no Tachi!" The Kusa-nin said in surprise as the shuriken moved closer to her.

"I-I think he did it!" Akatsuchi said, but then he, Sakura and Sasuke saw that the Kusa-nin had caught the shuriken… with her mouth.

_'He flawlessly perceived my escape route and struck along a path I didn't see myself…'_ The Kusa-nin thought before saying "Heh… such a shame…" She got cut off however when she noticed that the Uchiha had formed the tora sign _'He means to use Katon: Ryuka no jutsu!"_

Sasuke then sent a wave of fire along the wire towards the Kusa-nin, but Sasuke and Sakura's eyes widened when they saw that the Kusa-nin's face seemed to be melting and the piece of her face around her left eye had fallen off to reveal white skin underneath.

"That one so young should have such mastery of the Sharingan…! Truly a worthy successor of the honored name of clan Uchiha! In fact… I believe… I want you, after all…!" The Kusa-nin said.

"SASUKE-KUN!" Sakura yelled as she ran over to where Sasuke was standing before she looked towards the Kusa-nin and suddenly she found that she couldn't move.

"It's marvelous fun, having you show me all your tricks! You really are _his_ brother, aren't you? You can see – and conceal – things with those eyes of yours that Itachi-san himself never dreamed of!" The Kusa-nin said.

"Just who the heck are you?" Sasuke yelled.

"I'm Orochimaru, the giant snake. If you'd ever like a rematch… then pass this exam as quickly as you can! I'll see you again, if you manage to defeat the three Oto-nins who answer to me." The Kusa-nin, now identified as Orochimaru said.

"Wh-what are you babbling on about? We never want to see your face again!" Sakura yelled.

"Perhaps not… but wishing won't chase me away." Orochimaru said as he made a hand sign before his neck suddenly extended and his head lunged towards Sasuke and bit down on the said Uchiha's neck before Orochimaru's neck retracted.

"I look forward to seeing you again, Sasuke-kun… in the quest for power!" The snake said after his neck had returned to its normal length.

"Wh-what…? Everything… hurts!" Sasuke said as he brought his hand over his neck where Orochimaru had bitten him as three black tormoe suddenly appeared there.

"What did you do to Sasuke-kun?" Sakura yelled as Orochimaru started to sink down into the branch.

"Just a little something to remember me by…" He said before started Sasuke screaming.

"SASUKE-KUN!" Sakura yelled as Sasuke continued screaming "S-Sasuke-kun…? Hang on, Sasuke-kun! You hear me?" She then started crying as she noticed the mark on Sasuke's neck before she looked around "Naruto… Naruto… Sasuke-kun is…" She then saw that Naruto was unconscious and stuck to a tree '_I… Wh-what should I do…?'_

Akatsuchi then came down and landed next to Sakura as he was holding Bakutsuchi and Kurotsuchi over his shoulders.

"We should find a safe place to rest until the others have woken up." Akatsuchi said.

Forest of Death, team Guy

Lee, Neji and Tenten were sitting in the forest as they were eating.

"It'll probably start to get light in the next hour or so. We were able to use our first day to secure food and water. Most of the teams will be resting now… making this the best time to act. Let's split up… and reconnoiter for the next half hour. But whatever you find, when the time is up… be sure you're back here. Got it?" Neji said as he dropped a kunai down on the ground with the pointy end first.

"Okay!" Tenten said.

"Roger!" Lee said.

"Good…! Ikuzo!" Neji said and they shunshined in three different directions.

Forest of Death, team 7 and team Kurotsuchi

Sakura and Akatsuchi had put their respective teammates under a tree. Sakura had also removed Sasuke's Hitai-ate and placed a wet cloth on his forehead to keep his fever down. After a while she then removed the cloth and placed her hand on the Uchiha's forehead.

"Is he all right?" Akatsuchi asked.

"His breathing is improving, but… his fever's still high." Sakura said.

What they weren't aware of however, was that in the bushes where the three Oto-nins hiding.

"Heh heh… there they are! As Orochimaru-sama commanded, we'll strike at dawn! And our target is Uchiha Sasuke!" The apparent leader of the three said.

"If the other five get in our way, we can take 'em out, right?" One of the other two asked.

"Of course!" The leader of the three said.

As dawn came Akatsuchi had left to patrol around the area in case that snake would return as Sakura was keeping watch at the camp and hoped that the others would awaken soon.

'_Oh! It's already dawn?'_ She thought as she saw some light coming down.

She then noticed something approaching from behind and she pulled out a kunai from her pouch and slowly turned around, but she saw that it was just a squirrel.

'A squirrel…?' She thought before saying "What are you up to, scaring me like that?"

The squirrel then moved towards her and she noticed that it got dangerously close to one of the traps, she and Akatsuchi had laid there. She then threw the kunai and it hit the ground just in front of the squirrel before said squirrel then ran away.

'That was close. That was too close!' Sakura thought.

"That's pretty tightly wound. I wonder if she noticed the explosive tag we stuck on the squirrel!" One of the Oto-nins said.

"No… that's not it…" The leader of the three said.

"What then, Dosu? What's going on?" One of the others said.

"… We'll have to get closer to find out. So… what are we waiting for?" The leader of the three, now identified as Dosu said.

Forest of Death, Lee

Lee jumped from branch-to-branch through the forest until he eventually stopped at one of the branches as he saw 20 tree-leaves falling down.

_'If I can catch all 20 of these leaves before any of them hits the ground, then Sakura-san will fall in love with me! But if I miss even one… then my love for her will never be requited! And she'll probably make fun of my hair!'_ He thought before leaping down towards the leaves and he started catching them, one-by-one.

_'Just one more try…'_ He thought as he reached for the last leaf, but then he noticed something out of the corner of his eye _'It's…!'_ He saw a squirrel that had an explosive tag on its back.

BOOM!

As the smoke cleared, Lee lied on the ground with the squirrel in his left hand and the explosive tag in his right.

"Just in the nick of time! An explosive tag… on a very short timer. Who would do something so cruel?" Lee said as he crunched the tag.

Forest of Death, team 10

Shikamaru, Ino and Choji were hiding behind some bushes as Neji passed them.

"Come out of hiding… unless you're a coward." Neji said.

"How'd he spot us when we hid so fast?" Ino whispered before looking at the other two "My masterful plan A – hiding until anyone who might hurt us is gone – has failed! Time for plan B!"

"What a drag… finding us like that!" Shikamaru whispered before the three of them came out of the bushes.

"Oh! What an honor. Hyuga Neji-sama, last year's rookie of the year's rookie of the year… fancy meeting you here." Ino said.

"Wow… can I have your autograph?" Shikamaru asked.

"Oh! It's you three…" Neji said.

'_Get a load of this.'_ Ino thought before she pulled off her hair-string and she said "I can't tell you how long… I've dreamt of meeting you!"

"Get lost." Neji said as he walked away.

'_Why? Why didn't he find me sexy? What's wrong with him? It makes me so mad!'_ Ino thought as she angrily raised a fist in Neji's direction.

'_I tried to tell you he wouldn't go for it!'_ Shikamaru thought.

" Hey… Does that fist you're shaking in my direction mean you want to fight me?" Neji asked.

"Heh heh. O-of course not!" Ino said before thinking '_H-how could he know that… unless he does have eyes on the back of his head?'_ **(Kurama no Kyubi: No, Ino. Only women have eyes on the back of their heads… and they can read minds too by the way.)**

"Then get lost. I wouldn't demean myself by taking a scroll from losers like you. It would make me a laughing-stock." Neji said.

"O-okay!" Ino said as she and her teammates jumped back into the bushes.

"Hm… They're like cockroaches." Neji said before he continued walking.

"Let's go see if we can pick off some weaklings!" Ino said.

'_I doubt we'll find anyone weaker than us.'_ Shikamaru thought.

Forest of Death, team Fu

Fu, Shibuki and Takimaru jumped through the trees. A small bug then flew past Fu and she stopped before her two teammates stopped behind her.

"Nanabi-san, what is it?" Takimaru asked, but Fu ignored him.

'_Naruto-kyu and his friends are in danger?'_ Fu thought before jumping in the direction the bug had come from, she might not like humans that much – with the exception of her friends – but she can't look the other way when a fellow Jinchuriki is in trouble.

Forest of Death, team 7 and team Kurotsuchi

"Heh heh… you've been up all night standing guard, eh?" Sakura heard a voice from behind her and she turned around to see the three Oto-nins.

"As of now, you're off duty. Just wake Sasuke for us. the three of us want to take him on." Dosu said.

"Wh-what are you talking about? I know that some guy named Orochimaru is the one who's pulling all the strings… so what do you want?" Sakura yelled, shocking the three Oto-nins before she continued "What does this mark on Sasuke-kun's neck mean?"

"Hmm… I wonder what Orochimaru-sama's up to?" Dosu said as Sakura was wondering what he was talking about.

"Whatever… I can't walk away after hearing that! I'll destroy you, girl… and your little Sasuke-kun, too!" One of the other two Oto-nins said.

"Wait, Zaku!" Dosu said.

"Wait? Why?" The Oto-nin, now identified as Zaku asked before Dosu took a few steps forward before kneeling down.

"It's obvious… freshly turned stones, exposed soil… grass in a place it would never grow… someone's been setting booby traps… but what's the point of laying them if you leave evidence that warns your pray?" Dosu said as he ripped away the grass that Sakura had laid down.

"It's amateurish! So… the person who threw the kunai was trying to stop the squirrel from springing the trap?" Zaku said.

"Well, the girl is no use to us… so let's eliminate her first." Dosu said before he and his two teammates jumped into the air.

They didn't notice however that they were walking straight into Sakura's trap as she cut a string with her kunai while smirking, and a log suddenly swung down towards the three.

"A log? The trap was above us all along!" Dosu yelled before he put his right hand on the log and said "Very funny!" He then made a one-handed hand sign with his left hand and the log suddenly blew up to Sakura's surprise "To be honest… you know you're a complete no-talent, don't you? Stop dogging it and start working at it! It's an insult being underestimated by slackers like you!"

Suddenly a stone golem came down and punched the Oto-nins away before Akatsuchi and Lee came down and landed next to Sakura.

"Akatsuchi-san! And… Lee?" She exclaimed.

"Well, isn't this a strange sight? An Iwa-nin saving a Konoha-nin!" Dosu said.

"Sorry I'm late, but I ran into some weaklings from Ame with a heaven scroll, and on my way back, I ran into this guy." Akatsuchi said before Lee assumed a Taijutsu stance.

"Who are you two?" Dosu asked.

"I'm Konoha's handsome blue beast… Rock Lee!" Lee said.

"And I'm a Genin of Iwa, Akatsuchi!" Akatsuchi said.

"It can't be helped. Zaku… little Sasuke is all yours." Dosu said as he threw his earth scroll over to Zaku "They're as good as dead!"

'_From the looks of it, Sakura-san doesn't have much more fight left in her either.'_ Lee thought.

'_The unibrow kid is obviously a virtuoso of Taijutsu, while the other one seems to be using close-range elemental Ninjutsu. They'll make excellent playthings.'_ Dosu thought as he charged towards them.

Sakura then threw a senbon, but Dosu jumped into the air before coming down towards Lee. However Lee stuck his arm into the ground before pulling up the roots of a tree to block Dosu's strike.

"This is some kind of illusion, right? So, I'd be wasting my time ducking as though your attacks were real. I've seen you use these moves before." The Taijutsu user said.

'_He's… so strong!'_ Sakura thought.

"Doton: Goremu!" Akatsuchi said as a golem of stone came out of his mouth and struck down at Dosu with a punch which sent the Oto-nin flying back a few feet before landing on the ground.

Forest of Death, team 10

"How can we pick off the weak when we can't find any weaklings?" Ino asked.

"What a drag. If only those guys we ran into earlier had had the scroll we needed." Shikamaru said before Choji noticed something out of the corner of his eye.

"Hey! Naruto and Sasuke are unconscious. And Sakura's defending them." He said.

Forest of Death, team Guy

Neji and Tenten were both back at their rendezvous point, but there were no sign of Lee anywhere.

"It's not like Lee-san to keep us waiting! It's odd… he's usually such a stickler about punctuality. … I wonder if he ran into trouble…" Tenten said.

"Not him! No way. But we should still look for him." Neji said.

"Right!" Tenten said before they shunshined away.

Forest of Death, team 7, team Kurotsuchi and Lee

_'Guy-sensei… the time has surely come for me to use the forbidden move you taught me… and not hold back!'_ Lee thought as he unwrapped the bandages around his arms _'I'm defending the life of someone who means the world to me!'_ Lee then crouched down before disappearing.

_'Where'd he go?'_ Dosu wondered just before Lee appeared under him and with one powerful kick to the jaw, sent him high into the air before jumping after.

"I'm not done with you yet!" Lee said when he came up behind the Oto-nin and his bandages suddenly wrapped themselves around Dosu and the two of them spiraled – head-first – towards the ground.

"He's wide open… can't make a move to defend himself! Oh, crud!" Zaku said as he weaved a series of hand signs.

"Take this! Omote Renge!" Lee said just before they hit the ground.

Lee then jumped away at the last second, but as he landed he saw that the ground that Dosu had landed on had somehow been turned to a pillow of soil.

"Whew… looks like I made it…" Zaku said before he pulled his hands out of the ground.

"No way!" Lee yelled when Dosu got back up on his feet.

"… What a terrible technique… I managed to land on a pillow of soil… and it still almost wiped me out! But now… it's my turn…" Dosu said as he got ready to attack, but before he reached Lee, Akatsuchi came up in front of the Taijutsu user, weaving a series of hand signs before slamming both hands down onto the ground.

"Doton: Doryuheki no jutsu!" Akatsuchi said before a wall of earth suddenly rose up from the ground, blocking Dosu's attack.

"Zaku!" Dosu said as he jumped out of the way.

"All right." Zaku said before pointing his arms towards the wall of earth.

"Zankuha!" A powerful wave of sound then shot out of the air-pipes in his arms and the wall of earth didn't stand a chance as it was literally ripped into pieces. Dosu then jumped forward and swung his right arm in front of the two, giving them no time to react.

"Your moves may be fast… but ours are super-sonic! And muscles alone can't break down… this wall of sound!" Dosu said as he looked at Lee and both Lee and Akatsuchi fell down on their knees before vomiting.

"LEE-SAN! AKATSUCHI-SAN!" Sakura yelled.

_'My left ear…'_ Lee thought as he felt an intensive pain in said ear and he brought his hand up to it.

"It's this appliance on my arm… you see? It prevents you… from breaking my attacks." Dosu said.

"What did you use on them?" Sakura asked.

"Heh heh heh… It's sound! Even if you block my fist, the sound waves reach you." Dosu said.

_'Sound?'_ Akatsuchi thought.

"Do you understand… the fundamental nature of sound?" Dosu asked.

"Vibrations…?" Sakura guessed.

"Precisely. When you hear a sound, it's actually those vibrations displacing the air, which trembles against your eardrum. And the human eardrum – the tympanic membrane – ruptures when exposed to sound levels in excess of 150 phons. Moreover, if the sound is powerful enough to upset the semi-circular canals of the inner ear… it becomes impossible for you to maintain your balance. Heh heh… and it will be some time… before your equilibrium returns." Dosu explained.

"So, you see, crude, old-fashioned Taijutsu simply won't don't work against us. You did start out very well, though. It's rare for a foe to force me to reveal the nature of my techniques. But now the tide has turned against you! I can wield sound waves as a weapon… with enough force to crush entire boulders! And with a mere thought I can use sound waves to force air into the earth beneath me, transforming rock-hard soil into the softest kind of cushion… a far more elegant and effective art than your crude application of brute force." Zaku said.

_'Blast him…'_ Lee thought as he remembered what Guy had told him after he had learned the Omote Renge.

"The only time you may use this technique… is to protect someone very dear to you."

"… To protect… someone dear to me…?"

"But even if you never employ it, I'm very proud of you for mastering this technique! Good work, Lee!"

_'Darn it…'_ Lee thought.

"And now… it's your turn." Dosu said as he charged towards Sakura.

"Blast…!" Lee said as he tried to move, but found that he couldn't.

Just then however, a ball of quicklime hit the Oto-nin and sent him skidding backwards.

'_NANI?'_ Everyone present thought before they looked towards where the quicklime had come from to see that Kurotsuchi and Bakutsuchi had woken up.

"Kurotsuchi-san! Bakutsuchi-san!" Akatsuchi said.

"I don't know what's going on here, but it looks like we woke up at the right time." Kurotsuchi said before weaving a series of hand signs.

"Doton: Doryuso!" She called out and spears of earth suddenly shot out of the ground and headed straight for Dosu, but said Oto-nin easily managed to dodge them before charging at the girl.

"Kurotsuchi-san, be careful not to let his attacks get near you!" Akatsuchi said.

"Got it!" Kurotsuchi said as she went through several hand signs before slamming her hands down on the ground.

"Earth Style: Earth Dome jutsu!" She called out before a dome of earth appeared in front of her, but Dosu then simply put hi palm on the earth and it suddenly blew up.

"Nani?" Kurotsuchi said before Dosu aimed a punch at her and she just barely managed to dodge it before it felt as though her eardrum exploded and she fell down on her knees.

"KUROTSUCHI-SAN!" Bakutsuchi yelled before pulling out a kunai and charging at Dosu.

"Bakutsuchi-san, don't." Akatsuchi said, but it was too late as Dosu punched his fellow Iwa-nin, sending said ninja into a tree.

"Now… for the coup de grace!" Dosu said.

"I don't think so!" Sakura yelled as she pulled out several kunai and shuriken. She then threw the kunai at Dosu, but said Oto-nin easily blocked it with his amplifier.

"… Oh… my…" He said.

Forest of Death, team 10

"Running away sounds like a good plan! Those guys are getting creamed!" Choji whispered as they watched the battle that was going on.

"It looks like Sasuke and Naruto are just unconscious… but… the famous Lee and the Iwa-nins have obviously had their butts kicked, and Sakura's all alone… what are you going to do Ino?" Shikamaru whispered.

"Why… why are you asking me?" Ino asked.

"I mean, Sakura's in deep! We can't just leave her… can we? Wasn't she, like your best friend or something?" Shikamaru whispered and Ino suddenly thought back to when she and Sakura first became rivals.

"Um… Ino-chan?"

"What's up, Sakura?"

"I heard someone saying…"

"Saying what?"

"Saying that you like Sasuke-kun, too!"

"What?"

"If it's true… that makes us… rivals!"

_'Why am I remembering that now?'_ The Yamanaka heiress thought.

"Hey, Ino! What's it gonna be?" Shikamaru asked.

"There's nothing we can do. If we blunder in now… we may just make things worse!" Ino whispered, trying not to yell before thinking _'Those guys would take me out in about 10 seconds flat! Not even I… can beat them!'_

Forest of Death, team 7, team Kurotsuchi and Lee

Sakura threw the shuriken, but Zaku came up in front of the throwing-stars before sending them back towards Sakura with a wave of sound.

_'My shuriken… were repelled by a wall of air!_' Sakura thought as she dodged them, but then the female member of the Oto team grabbed the Konoha kunoichi's hair.

"Lovely hair… so much more bounce and shine than mine has! What ninja technique is that, Deep Conditioning no jutsu? You're a disgrace to all shinobi… fussing with your looks when you should concentrate on your training!" The female Oto-nin said before looking at Zaku "Zaku… why don't you finish of Sasuke or one of her other fallen heart-throbs… right in front of this lovesick little pig? The least we can do… is entertain her!"

"Hah! Good one!" Zaku said before walking towards where Naruto and Sasuke were lying.

_'No! They wouldn't…!_' Sakura thought.

"Hold still!" The female Oto-nin said.

'_S-Sakura-san…'_ Lee thought.

_'I can't summon any strength… I… I can't… I'm just a burden to them… just someone they have to protect! I'm always in the way… never helping. Darn it! I thought this time… it would be different! This time… I need to help the people I care about!'_ Sakura thought.

"All right. Let's do it." Zaku said as he got closer to the two sleeping Genin.

"Hey! Sasuke and Naruto are in deep trouble!" Shikamaru whispered.

_'Wh-what'll we do?'_ Ino wondered.

The female Oto-nin then noticed that Sakura pulled out a kunai.

"Your tricks are useless against me, little girl." She said.

"You think so?" Sakura asked before she – to everyone's surprise – cut her hair so that she got free from the Oto-nin's hold.

"Nani…?" The female Oto-nin said in surprise.

_'I'd always… thought of myself as a full-fledged ninja… proud to be an equal as I trailed after my teammates… crushing on Sasuke-kun and scolding Naruto… watching them… safely from the background. While they… would both risk anything to protect me. Lee-san says he likes me, too… and he risked his life to come between me and danger. You're all my teachers… and you've shown me what I want to be… like all of you. Now it's your turn… to watch my back!' _Sakura thought as she stood up on her feet and her Hitai-ate fell off and landed on the ground.

_'Sakura…?'_ Ino thought.

"Ha! Kin! Finish her!" Zaku yelled and the female Oto-nin, now identified as Kin pulled several senbons from her weapons pouch and charged at Sakura who was currently weaving a series of hand signs.

_'Those signs she's making…!'_ Zaku thought just before Kin slammed her senbons into the pinkette's back, but Sakura just turned into a log_ 'Zigging when I zagged… she's making a mockery of this, trying to deceive us with such a rudimentary technique!'_

Zaku then noticed that Sakura came running for him, with four kunais in each hand.

_'The nerve of her, coming right for me!'_ Zaku thought before yelling "Kin, look out!"

Kin then jumped out of the way as Sakura threw the kunais towards Zaku.

"Give it up." Zaku said before thinking _'The air pressure is at full strength, with no ultra-sonic output…'_

He then saw that Sakura weaved the signs for Kawarimi no jutsu again.

"Poor, foolish girl… just a one-trick pony. Zankuha!" Zaku said as he sent a sound-wave straight towards Sakura and the kunais were deflected back at her, but she once again turned into a log "Obviously… you're over-head!"

Zaku then looked up to see that Sakura was indeed above him as she weaved the same sequence of hand signs again and Zaku pulled out four kunais from his pouch.

"Try it twice, try it thrice… that trick will never work on me! My smallest skill is more than enough for you!" He said as he threw the kunais towards the kunoichi and he then started to look around, trying to find out where'd she come from next "Heh heh… come out, come out, wherever you…" He got interrupted however, when a drop of blood landed on his face and he looked up to see Sakura with three of the kunais still stabbed into her while she was holding the fourth in her left hand _'What the…? This time… it's real!'_

Sakura then fell down onto Zaku and she stabbed his right arm before biting his left.

"Get off!" Zaku yelled.

_'Sakura…'_ Ino thought as she recalled the first time she met the pinkette, as well as when she introduced her to her other friends and the time when Sakura first told them that she had a crush on Sasuke-kun and the time when they met after having been assigned into teams.

Zaku then managed to get Sakura off of him and he got ready to kill her.

"Th-this is not good…!" Choji whispered.

"Ino! Ino… come on!" Shikamaru whispered.

_'They need me… to protect them…'_ Sakura thought.

"You little witch!" Zaku yelled as he prepared to fire, but then to everyone's surprise, team 10 came up in front of Sakura, with Shikamaru holding onto Choji's scarf "Hmm. The freak parade just goes on and on…"

"Ino…" Sakura said.

"Sakura… I told you… I'd never let you show me up!" Ino said.

Sasuke's mindscape

Sasuke was hovering in a completely white space and in front of him was what appeared to be a younger version of himself.

'_Who are you?'_ He thought.

"Tou-san and Ka-san… needn't have died." The younger Sasuke said.

'_The me… of long ago?'_ The older Sasuke thought.

"Ultimately, without strength, there's nothing you can do. I wasn't strong enough. Our clan was destroyed. Everyone was killed… because you… let them die. You just… stood there and watched." The younger Sasuke said as he brought his hand up to his left eye and started ripping off the skin around the eye to reveal Orochimaru's eye as his voice changed to Orochimaru's "Because you're nothing but a weakling!"

Forest of Death, team 7, team Kurotsuchi, team 10 and Lee

"Ino… why…?" Sakura said.

"Did you think I was going to let you make the big sacrifice and hog all the glory in front of Sasuke-kun?" Ino said.

"More of these annoying little bugs have crept in… and started swarming." Dosu said.

"Wh-what are you guys thinking? Those creeps are too dangerous! They'll eat us alive! Shikamaru… let go of me!" Choji yelled.

"Nope! No way. Sorry, buddy, but that's the way it is. We're the men here. We can't run away when Ino's ready to risk her life fighting. Not even if we die!" Shikamaru said.

"Sorry I dragged you boys into this. But we are a three-man team… all for one and one for all." Ino said.

"What's meant to happen will, I guess!" Shikamaru said.

"Heh heh… we'll let you off the hook if you want to run… fatty." Zaku said.

"What did that guy just say? I… could've sworn he called me…" Choji said.

_'That word's a big no-no with Choji… if this guy says it again…!'_ Shikamaru thought.

"You're welcome to run away… if you can find a hiding place that's big enough… fatso!" Zaku said.

"I'M NOT FAT! I'M JUST PLEASINGLY PLUMP!" Choji yelled as he snapped "Pleasingly plump people UNITE!"

_'Unreal!'_ Sakura thought.

"Does everyone understand? Do you get me? Konoha and the Oto ninja are at war!" Choji yelled.

_'Good luck. Choji's lost it!'_ Ino thought.

"This is turning into a complete drag!" Shikamaru said as he let go of Choji's scarf.

"… It certainly is." Zaku said before thinking _'Our orders were to find and kill Uchiha Sasuke under the cover of this exam, but…'_

"Sakura…! Stay here and watch over your team." Ino said.

"Right!" Sakura said.

"This is it, team Ino. Up and at 'em, full speed ahead!" Ino yelled.

"Yes, ma'am!" Shikamaru said.

"Ino-Shika-Cho formation! It's on you, Choji!" Ino yelled as Choji made a hand sign.

"Okay! Baika no jutsu!" Choji said and he suddenly became twice as big and looked like a ball with tiny arms, legs and head "Nikudan Sensha."

Choji's arms, legs and head then went into his body as he started rolling towards Zaku.

"What kind of freakin' jutsu is that? Hm. Just a fat guy rolling himself around! Zankuha!" Zaku said as he sent a sound-wave at Choji, but said Akimichi managed to hold his own and after a few seconds, he jumped up into the air "Flying? How is that possible?"

_'With that kind of rotation… so much for air pressure! Maybe ultra-sonic waves…? If that thing hits me, I'll be pulverized!'_ Zaku thought as Choji came down towards him. Seeing as though Zaku was in trouble, Dosu ran towards him, but Shikamaru noticed it.

_'Oh, no you don't! Since you've been the biggest drag in everybody's ascot… Kagemane no jutsu!'_ He thought and suddenly his shadow stretched and hit Dosu's own shadow, paralyzing the Oto-nin.

_'I… can't move! Why is that? It's his shadow!_' Dosu thought as Zaku managed to dodge Choji.

"Wh-what are you doing at a time like this? Dosu!" Kin yelled.

"Ino! The woman is the only one left." Shikamaru said and Ino made a hand sign.

"You got it, Shikamaru! Take care of my body while I'm gone!" Ino said.

"Gotcha!" Shikamaru said.

"Shintenshin no jutsu!" Ino said and she suddenly fell asleep as Shikamaru caught her before she hit the ground.

"Man, that makes my head spin!" Choji said as he stood up on his feet.

Kin suddenly pulled out a kunai and held it up to her own throat proving that it was actually Ino, in Kin's body.

"You're finished! If either of you makes a move, your teammate, Kin is as good as dead! Both of you, leave your scrolls here, and go finish the exam without them. When I can no longer sense either of your chakras, I'll release Kin!" She yelled, but she was puzzled when she saw both of them, smirking _'What do they think is so funny?'_

"They're going to…!" Sakura shouted when she figured what the Oto-nins were planning and Zaku pointed his left arm at Ino/Kin "NO!"

Zaku then sent a sound-wave straight at Ino/Kin and she was sent flying into a tree before she fell down to the ground as blood came out both Kin and Ino's mouths.

"INO…!" Shikamaru yelled.

"… Wh-what unbelievable lowlifes… to wound your own comrade!" Ino/Kin said.

"You underestimated us… bad mistake." Zaku said.

"Our objective is not some stupid scroll… nor have we any interest in passing your infantile exam." Dosu said to everyone's surprise before he continued "We're after Sasuke!"

_'Blast… I'm almost at my time limit!' _Shikamaru thought just before his shadow detached itself from Dosu's and retracted back to him.

"So… your little trick can only work for five minutes at a time? And as for the jutsu that girl is using… from the look of things, if we inflict any harm on her host, her real body suffers as well! Heh heh… we can kill her by killing Kin ourselves!" Dosu said.

"You're despicable!" Everyone then looked up towards where the voice came from to see Neji and Tenten.

"You bucolic nonentities think you're all that just because your sonic powers were strong enough to whump these novices." Neji said.

"What?" Dosu said.

"Again the vermin come crawling from the woodwork." Zaku said as Neji looked down towards Lee.

"Looks like you blew it, huh?" He said.

"Lee-san…" Tenten said.

'_Those are Lee-san's teammates…'_ Sakura thought.

"The kid with the hairdo belongs to us. You hurt him, so now you have to answer to us!" Neji said as he activated his Byakugan.

'_His eyes seem to penetrate everything!'_ Dosu thought.

"Stop while you still can or we'll give you everything we've got." Neji said and he was about to attack Dosu before suddenly noticing something.

"Heh heh… if you find us so despicable… why won't you stop posturing and start doing something about it?" Dosu asked.

"S-Sakura-chan…" Everyone turned towards the voice to see that Naruto was awake and attempting to climb up on his feet.

"Naruto…" Sakura said.

"About time you woke up, tree-hugger." Kurotsuchi said before Naruto got up on his feet and walked forward until he was standing in front of Sakura, and he looked around while activating his eyes.

"Sakura-chan… Bushy-Brows… Kurotsuchi… Iwa-nins… Sasuke…" He looked over everyone who had been taken down before glaring at the Oto-nins, and luckily his eyes were hidden in the shadow of his hair.

"Heh. So, one of the sleepyheads decided to wake up, I see. Well too bad. You should have stayed in dreamland, but now we'll just kill you too." Zaku said.

"Ino!" Naruto said calmly, ignoring Zaku "Return to your body."

"Huh? Why?" Ino asked, surprised that the blond idiot knew that she was in Kin's body, and she wondered why he wanted her to return to her own.

"Just do it." Naruto replied.

"R-right." Ino said before making a hand sign "KAI!" And she returned to her own body.

"What are we waiting for? Let's blow this guy out of here! Zankukyokuha!" Zaku called out as he sent a powerful sound wave towards Naruto and the others.

As the sound wave approached the blond, however, he held out his arms as if on instinct and what looked like a blue shield appeared in front of him and as the wave hit the shield, it seemed to be absorbed into the young Rinnegan bearer.

"Nani?" Zaku said in surprise, and he wasn't the only one that was surprised. None of the people present had ever seen someone blocking a Ninjutsu with his bare hands, in fact not even Naruto – who had performed the miracle – didn't know what had just happened.

"Looks like Ninjutsu won't work on this one. Well… in that case!" Dosu said before charging towards Naruto, but said blond looked up towards the Oto-nins. Dosu was then stopped in his tracks as two large purple eyes with four rings centered on the pupil like a ripple pattern seemed to appear above the boy, and the three Oto-nins lost their breaths as they felt as though their bodies became much heavier, and they also started sweating bullets.

'_What the…?'_ Shikamaru thought before he noticed Naruto's eyes '_What happened to his eyes? Has he unlocked some kind of Dojutsu? Is this why he wore those sunglasses?'_

'_T-those eyes… What is he?'_ Dosu thought, never having seen or heard of eyes like Naruto's before.

"I'll give you one chance to leave your scroll here and escape!" Naruto said.

"Obviously, we won't stand a chance against you." Dosu said before he put an earth scroll down on the ground.

"You don't seriously think that we would lose against some weakling like him?" Zaku said.

"Didn't you feel that Killing-Intent? It would only have that effect if he's stronger than us!" Dosu said before turning around to leave, quickly followed by Kin, and Zaku hesitantly followed shortly after.

"MATTE!" Sakura yelled and the Oto-nins stopped as they looked over their shoulders "You've got to tell me! Who is Orochimaru? What did he do to Sasuke-kun? And… why was Sasuke-kun the one he chose?"

"I don't know… we were just following orders." Dosu said before thinking '_You ordered us to murder Sasuke, but you got to him first. And instead of killing him, you marked him with that curse. What's your game?'_

Forest of Death, team Fu

Fu, Shibuki and Takimaru were in the trees over-looking the battle.

"Whoa. What was it that that blond kid did?" Shibuki asked.

"I don't know, but for some reason I hope I don't have to fight him." Takimaru said.

'_Those eyes aren't normal. He's got to have a Dojutsu, but I've never heard of one like that before. Kyubi Jinchuriki, Uzumaki Naruto, there's obviously more to you than meets the eye, and I'm not talking about your tenant.'_ Fu thought as she licked her lips before turning to her teammates "Let's get out of here."

"Right!" The two of them said in unison before the three Taki-nins shunshined away.

Forest of Death, team 7, team Kurotsuchi, team 10 and team Guy

"Hey, Naruto!" Sakura said as she walked over to the blond, catching his attention.

"Huh? What is it Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked as he turned around, but then Sakura suddenly punched him so hard that he was sent flying into a tree.

"Hey! What was that for?" Naruto yelled before Sakura appeared in front of him.

"What happened to the sunglasses?" She asked, making sure that no one else would hear her.

"Oh, those? They broke." Naruto said.

Hey, Naruto!" Naruto and Sakura looked towards the voice to see Shikamaru walking towards them and Naruto quickly looked away so that the Nara wouldn't see his eyes.

"Here." Shikamaru said as he handed Sakura a pair of sunglasses.

"What?" She said.

"We ran into a group of Ame-nins earlier and one of them dropped these. I don't know why, but I had a feeling that they could come in handy, so I picked them up." Shikamaru said before walking back to his teammates as Sakura gave the sunglasses to Naruto who put them on.

Tenten jumped down and landed in front of Ino who was helping Lee.

"Let me take him from here." Tenten said and Ino handed the boy over to the weapon user before said weapon user started relentlessly shaking Lee while yelling "Lee-san! Are you all right? Pull yourself together!"

"Huh? Tenten? When did you get here?" Lee asked.

"We came to rescue you!" Tenten said before Lee started to look around.

"… Huh…? Where did the Oto-nins go?" He asked.

"Naruto scared them off!" Tenten said.

"Oh…" Lee said as he looked towards where Naruto and Sakura were.

"What were you thinking, going off half-cocked like that, alone? Look at you! You're a mess!" Tenten said.

"S-Sakura-san needed me! saving her was my sacred duty… as a man!" Lee said.

'_Oh, for crying out loud! If Lee-san had faced those guys by himself, with no distractions, he could have taken them!'_ Tenten thought before saying "You're an idiot. You know that, right?"

"Your words are so sharp, if I try to answer back, I'll cut myself!" Lee said.

"Lee-san… arigato." Sakura said as she came over to Lee and Tenten "Thanks to your help, I've made some kind of breakthrough. My skills have been taken to a whole new level."

'_Sakura-san…'_ Lee thought.

"You guys all right?" Naruto asked as he knelt down over Kurotsuchi.

"I don't want your sympathy, tree-hugger!" Kurotsuchi said as she climbed to her feet quickly followed by her two teammates, and Naruto rose up on his feet as well.

"But thanks." Kurotsuchi whispered so that her teammates wouldn't hear it "So, you're gona tell me what Dojutsu you have?"

"What? No way!" Naruto said

Forest of Death, tower

Anko was sitting on a couch in a room inside the tower in front of two ANBU. Just earlier that day, she had run into Orochimaru in the forest, though the snake Sannin managed to get away from her.

"What's happened is a disaster, but the exam must go on!" Anko said.

"Why?" One of the ANBU asked before a Jonin came in the door.

"Thank goodness you're here, Anko-san! There is something I must tell you right away…" The Jonin said.

"Now what? We're right in the middle of something vital!" Anko said.

"Observe!" The Jonin said as he held up a surveillance tape before putting it into a video player.

"Video surveillance, eh?" One of the ANBU said as the Gaara, Kankuro and Temari were shown on the TV.

"Right there… Notice the time and date stamp…" The Jonin said as he pointed at where the time was shown.

"That looks like…" Anko said.

"It is. it was shot from the interior of the tower… a mere hour and 37 minutes after the second exam began! The three ninja from Suna… have already passed the second exam!" The Jonin said.

Chapter preview

Hiruzen "Congratulations to you all on passing the second exam!"

Orochimaru "So… you've mastered the spells of sealing, Kakashi? … Looks like you're all grown up."

Ino "So, Sakura… It's you and me… going head-to-head. I never saw it coming."

Kiba '_The only ones who haven't competed yet are me, Hinata, Naruto, one of the Iwa-nins, one of the Oto-nins, Choji, Neji, One of the Taki-nins and Lee… And that guy from Suna…'_

Naruto "You're so high on yourself… You just go and fight me alone, or with your dog, or any other way you want!"

Hayate "Next time on… cough… on Naruto: Rinnegan Jinchuriki: Preliminaries."

Sasuke "Naruto… You're one of the ones that I wanna fight the most!"

Character status

Naruto: Power level: 30

Techniques: Henge, Kawarimi, Oiroke, Harem, Kage Bunshin, Suiton: Suiryudan, Doton: Moguragakure, Futon: Kamikaze, Hyoton: Sensatsu suisho, Rinnegan: Killing-Intent.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Kekkei Genkai: Rinnegan, Hyoton.

Sasuke: Power level: 30

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi, Katon: Goukakyo, Katon: Housenka, Katon: Ryuka.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Kekkei Genkai: Sharingan.

Sakura: Power level: 15

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken, senbon.

Kurotsuchi: Power level: 30

Techniques: Katon: Ryuka, Suiton: Mizurappa, Doton: Doryuso, Earth style: Earth dome, Yoton: Sekkaigyo.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken, sword.

Kekkei Genkai: Yoton.

Akatsuchi: Power level: 25

Techniques: Doton: Doryuheki, Doton: Goremu.

Weapons: none

Bakutsuchi: Power level: 20

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi.

Weapons: kunai, bombs.

Kekkei Genkai: unknown (not unlocked yet).

Rock Lee: Power level: 25

Techniques: Konoha Senpou, Kagebuyo, Konoha Reppu, Konoha Daisenpu, Omote Renge.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Kiba: Power level: 30

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi, Shikyaku, Jujin Bunshin, Tsuuga, Gatsuuga.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Hinata: Power level: 20

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi, Juken.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Kekkei Genkai: Byakugan.

Shino: Power level: 25

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi, Kikaichu, Mushi Bunshin, Mushi Kame, Tetsuzanko, Hijutsu: Mushiyose, Hijutsu: Mushidama.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Shikamaru: Power level: 17

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi, Kagemane, Ino-Shika-Cho.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Choji: Power level: 20

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi, Baika, Nikudan sensha, Ino-Shika-Cho.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Ino: Power level: 15

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi, Shintenshin, Ino-Shika-Cho.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Fu: Power level: 30

Techniques: Mizu Bunshin, Takigakure-Ryu: Mizukiri no Yaiba, Mushikui, Hijutsu: Rinpungakure.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Shibuki: Power level: 27

Techniques: Mizu Bunshin, Takigakure-Ryu: Mizukiri no Yaiba, Mizu no Tatsumaki.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Takimaru: Power level: 27

Techniques: Mizu Bunshin, Takigakure-Ryu: Mizukiri no Yaiba, Akagan: Iryujonmisuto.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Kekkei Genkai: Akagan.

Orochimaru: Power level: 139

Techniques: Doton: Kage Bunshin, Jagei Jubaku, Gogyo Fuin, Mandara no Jin, Sen'eijashu, Kage Bunshin, Kuchiyose, Kuchiyose: Rashomon, Shoshagan, Futon: Daitoppa, Kanashibari, Sojasosai, Shoshagan, Juinjutsu.

Weapons: Kusanagi.

Dosu: Power level: 35

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi, Kyomeisen.

Weapons: melody arm.

Zaku: Power level: 30

Techniques: Zankuha, Zankukyokuha.

Weapons: none

Kin: Power level: 30

Techniques: none

Weapons: senbon.

**Kurama no Kyubi:** I'm very sorry for the late update, but I was delayed because I was in the middle of a chapter on Naruto: the Legend of Aang when I should have moved on to this story, and I didn't want to stop in the middle of a chapter in case something would happen to my computer and I'd been forced to write the chapter over again. Anyway, in case you're wondering how Naruto's Killing-Intent worked on the Oto-nins when one of them were stronger than him and the other two were just as strong as him is because of the Rinnegan.


	5. Preliminaries

**Naruto: Rinnegan Jinchuriki**

**Chunin exam ark**

**Kurama no Kyubi:** I can't think of anything to say right now, so let's get over to the reviews.

**bankai777:** i wonder what will the 3rd tsuchikage say if his grandaughter is dating naruto.

**Onoki:** I wouldn't say anything, I would've died of a heart attack.

**evil-pain:** What's up with that power level crap thought this was naruto not dragonball z lol but other then that cool story I hope the pairing is naruto x fu plz no Hinata

**Kurama no Kyubi:** I don't quite remember well, but I think that Kakashi once used the term "power level", that's why I use that term in this story.

**SSJ3 Kyubi Gohan:** Oh yeah much stronger naruto for the chunnin exams.

**Kurama no Kyubi:** He's not really that much stronger, just a little smarter and he knows a few more jutsu. He might be much stronger by the third exam though.

**SSJ3 Kyubi Gohan:** Damn that was awesome also i have a feeling the pairing is naruto/Kurotsuchi

**Kurama no Kyubi:** Maybe…

**SRIDHARAN RADHAKRISHNAN:** Excellent story so far. I like it very much. Konoha and Iwa are helping each other inorder to survive against orochimaru is nice by the way. All characters are given importance in this story. The teamwork between Naruto and Kurotsuchi comes natural which is a plus for their future relationship. I can't wait to see the preliminaries. Thanks for the story. I wonder what about the pairings in this story so far...

**Kurama no Kyubi:** I'm glad you like it.

**god of all:** Great chapter and story so far please continue this story soon.

**Kurama no Kyubi:** Don't worry, I'll try to get this chapter done as soon as possible. Though by the time you read this, I've already gotten done with the chapter.

**Decius23:** Great Story so far! Keep up your good work and please Update more often ; Oh yeah and i really would like a NaruKuro pairing ('cause there are not many)

**Kurama no Kyubi:** Why do so many people believe that the pairing will be Naru/Kuro? I mean, they only kissed once and that was just an accident.

**SPark681:** Nice story so far can't wait to see the next chapter of this one, as always keep up the great work!

**Kurama no Kyubi:** Arigato.

**Myrddin767:** hmm, now the secret is out. Can't wait to see how that'll affect everything! :D

**Kurama no Kyubi:** The secret isn't out, the only ones that found out about the Rinnegan are Kurotsuchi, Orochimaru, the Oto-nins and Shikamaru. However, only Orochimaru knows what Dojutsu it is and he's the one who's least likely to tell anyone. Kurotsuchi – who's the most likely to tell someone – won't tell anyone if – as many of you believes – she gets together with Naruto. The only one the Oto-nins would ever tell would be Orochimaru, but he already knows, and Shikamaru would be smart enough to figure out why Naruto covers his eyes like that, though he's probably quite curious about the Dojutsu.

**S-Wanderer999:** I'm enjoying the story so far, but I can't place for certain just who Naruto will be paired with (unless he's getting with two ladies). Although I admit that the chapter makes me lean slightly more towards Kurotsuchi, although Fu might still be a possibility.

**Kurama no Kyubi:** Just wait and see.

**S-Wanderer999:** But hopefully Naruto can not only replicate the abilities of the Preta path, but also be able to use the gravity attacks of the Deva path (even if it's not at the same skill level as Nagato).

**Kurama no Kyubi: **He will eventually know all of Nagato's abilities.

**S-Wanderer999:** Looking forward to the next chapter and seeing how the preliminaries go (although hopefully, some of the matches are different).

**Kurama no Kyubi:** They will be, though some of the matches will be the same.

**Nianque:** Right now I'm leaning towards NarutoxKurotsuchixFuu. But I really like Yugito... of course you haven't used her yet.

**Kurama no Kyubi:** Yugito'll end up the same way she did in canon.

**jim anime:** I don't write much, but one sugestion NarutoxFuuXKurotsuchi or NarutoxKurotsuchi ONLY for the face in the cass Naruto and Oonoki meet and Kurotsuchi said(I don't can remember how said 'presentar' in english because not is mi first language XD)

K :Jiji this is mi boyfriend Uzumaki-NAMIKAZE Naruto

Oonoki:...

K: Jiji?

Oonoki fall for a heart atack and chaos in Iwa XD

**Kurama no Kyubi:** Seriously, if a shinobi survives to become as old as Onoki, I doubt a heart attack could finish him off, right Onoki?

**Onoki:** …

**Kurama no Kyubi:** Ummm… Onoki? Hey, anyone in there? (Knocks on Onoki's head) … Probably taking a nap… Yep, that's gotta be it… (Turns around and quietly leaves the Tsuchikage office.)

"Rinnegan." Normal speech

'_Rinnegan.'_ Normal thought

"**Rinnegan." Biju speech**

'_**Rinnegan.'**_** Biju thought**

**Kurotsuchi:** Kurama no Kyubi doesn't own Naruto, or any of us for that matter.

Chapter 4: Preliminaries

It's been more than 1 day since the battle against the sound trio. After Sasuke had woken up, Kurotsuchi, once again challenged team 7, wanting to battle Sasuke. But this time the challenge was turned down. Naruto did however come up with a proposal for them, the Iwa-nins could temporarily team up with team 7 until they've eventually reached the tower.

After discussing it with her teammates, Kurotsuchi agreed to the proposal, safety in numbers and all that.

During the night in-between the 3rd and the 4th days, Naruto was sitting on a branch, looking towards the tower, which couldn't be more than 1 or 2 kilometers away.

"Hey, tree-hugger!" Naruto looked down to see Kurotsuchi standing on the ground "Care if I join you?"

Shortly afterwards Kurotsuchi was sitting on the same branch as the blond.

"We don't have a long way till we've reached the tower." Kurotsuchi said.

"Yeah, and once there, we can finally leave this forest." Naruto said "I wonder how many teams have already passed… Or how many teams will pass, for that matter."

"Say, Naruto-kun?" Kurotsuchi said as she looked at Naruto, not knowing when she started adding suffix to the blond's name.

"Hm? What is it, Kuro-chan?" Naruto said as Kurotsuchi blushed at the suffix, Naruto gave her.

"Why won't you tell me the name of your Dojutsu?" Kurotsuchi asked.

"I already told you, didn't I? It's a secret." Naruto said and none of them realized that their faces were moving closer to one-another.

"Could I see those eyes again?" Kurotsuchi asked.

"Well, you've already seen them once." Naruto said as he removed the sunglasses, revealing the Rinnegan to the world.

"Those eyes are pretty cool, you know." Kurotsuchi said as the two of them slowly closed their eyes.

"Yeah, I know." Naruto said, but when their faces were mere inches apart, they could hear a whistle behind them and Naruto quickly put on the glasses as Kurotsuchi looked towards where the whistle had come from.

"Bakutsuchi, Akatsuchi. Get out of here!" She yelled, and her two teammates fell down from the branch of a nearby tree that they had been hiding on.

"I suppose we should get back to the others." Kurotsuchi said.

"R-right." Naruto said before the two jumped down.

"What kind of powers do those eyes of yours have, anyway?" Kurotsuchi asked.

"Well, I can see your chakra, even down to your chakra core. In fact, I can even accurately tell the amount of chakra one has." Naruto said.

"Really? And here I thought the Sharingan and Byakugan were good at seeing chakra." Kurotsuchi said.

"Also, when I create a Kage Bunshin, my and the clone's eyes get linked." Naruto said.

"What do you mean?" Kurotsuchi asked.

"Well, I can see what the clone sees, and the clone can see what I see." Naruto said.

"Hmm… An ability like that sounds like it could come in handy." Kurotsuchi said before thinking '_Just wait till I tell jiji about this.'_

"Other than that, I don't know much more about the eyes' abilities. Though I believe that shield which protected us from that Oto-nin's jutsu earlier was one of these eyes' powers as well, I don't know how I did that though." Naruto said.

"I see…" Kurotsuchi said before they entered the camp site.

Forest of Death, tower, the next day

After having reached the tower, team 7 said goodbye to team Kurotsuchi before finding the door they should enter from. Once inside, they found themselves in an empty room with no one but them in it.

"… There's no one here…" Naruto said.

"Hey! Look at that!" Sakura said as she pointed up to a wall scroll that was on the… wall.

"If qualities of Heaven are your desire, acquire wisdom and knowledge to take your mind higher. If Earthly qualities are what you lack, train your body in the fields and prepare to attack. When both Heaven and Earth are opened together, the path of peril will revert to the righteous path forever. This… something… is the secret way… that guides us on from this place today. Signed: Sandaime Hokage." Naruto read.

"I think it refers to the scrolls… I think maybe it's telling us to open both the heaven and earth scrolls, but…" Sakura said as Sasuke held up the scrolls and gave the earth scroll to Naruto.

"Well… what are we waiting for?" Naruto asked and they opened the scrolls, but were surprised to find the kanji for person inside before smoke suddenly came out of the scrolls, and instantly recognizing what was happening they threw the scrolls away just before there was a large puff of smoke.

"Y-you're…?" Sasuke said as he and the other two looked in surprise at the form of Umino Iruka.

"Hey, kids…! It's been a while, eh?" Iruka said.

"I don't understand!" Sakura yelled.

"Huh? Iruka-sensei… what are you doing, popping out of a summoning spell?" Naruto asked.

"The spell was designed so that Chunin could greet the applicants at the end of the second exam. It was just luck that I got to be the messenger for the three of you." Iruka said.

"Messenger…?" Sakura asked.

"Yeah. Congratulations… you've all passed the second exam. This calls for a celebration! I wish I could take you out for ramen at Ichiraku…" Iruka said before he got cut off when Naruto jumped at him.

"YES!" The blond yelled.

"H-hey. Naruto. Let me finish…" Iruka said before Naruto cut him off.

"I'm so happy!" He said.

"Oh, right! Iruka-sensei! What can you tell us about the wall scroll?" Sakura asked as she pointed up at said scroll before she continued "It looks like moths have been at it! And we couldn't figure out what it means!"

"Well, part of why I'm here is to make sure you understand the message of the scroll, so… read it again. It's the directive set down by the Sandaime Hokage for all Chunin level ninja." Iruka said as Naruto stepped away from him.

""Directive"…?" He asked.

"That's right! In the text, the word "Heaven" refers to the human mind… and "Earth" refers to the human body. "If qualities of Heaven are your desire, acquire wisdom and knowledge to take your mind higher." In other words… if Naruto's weakest area is his brain and academic knowledge… he's got to study hard and learn the principles that will help him on his missions." Iruka said and Sakura started laughing, but she stopped however when Iruka continued "And… "If Earthly qualities are what you lack, train your body in the fields and prepare to attack." If Sakura's weak point is with her lack of strength and power… she needs to train hard and find the riches of physical stamina and skill. And once you access the qualities of both Heaven and Earth… no mission – however dangerous – will be a wrong path for you. You'll be walking a safe path, even in the midst of the most perilous mission… that's it!"

"Then… what about that blank space? What goes there…?" Sakura asked before Iruka picked up one of the scrolls and held it out in front of the three Genins.

"The word that goes there is a description of what a Chunin should be. The single character that belongs in the blank space is the one from the interior of the scrolls. It's "Jin", meaning one person or all people. The challenge of seeing who survived these past five days was part of the exam designed to test the applicants' basic Chunin abilities. You all passed with flying colors. Chunin are the unit commander class… responsible for leading their teams. They can only do so by a combination of intelligence and strength. I can't emphasize it enough. Learn it… live it. Believe it from the bottom of your heart! Keep the Chunin directive in your mind as you move on to the next exam. That's it… that's the entire message!" Iruka said.

"Yes, sir!" Naruto said as he gave a salute.

"… But… about the third exam… don't overdo things. Especially you, Naruto… I worry about you." Iruka said.

"The day I got the Konoha graduation Hitai-ate… I stopped being a student! No need to worry about me! It's proof of my maturity… and I got it from you, Iruka-sensei! My temper hasn't changed any, and maybe I'm impulsive and full of energy… but I'm not a kid! I'm… a full-fledged shinobi! You got that?" Naruto said.

"… I see… my apologies, Naruto…" Iruka said before gesturing to a nearby door "Now pass through this door and wait till the end of the exams together with the other teams."

The three Genin then did as Iruka said and passed through the door.

Once through the door they saw that other than themselves and team Kurotsuchi only four other teams were present, team 8, team Kabuto, team Gaara and team Fu.

As the time went on both team Guy and team Dosu showed up during the fourth day, and team 10 finally made it at the brink of the fifth day, just a mere few hours before the exam would be over.

When the exam was finally over, the teams were still in the waiting room, waiting for further instructions.

Naruto and Sasuke were sitting at the table, arm wrestling, while Sakura, Ino, Kurotsuchi, Bakutsuchi and Akatsuchi were watching with Sakura, Ino and Bakutsuchi cheering for Sasuke and Kurotsuchi and Akatsuchi cheering for Naruto.

Choji was stuffing his face as Shikamaru seemed to be sleeping on the bench on the other side of the table.

Kiba was sitting on a couch, feeding his dog.

Fu and Shino were standing off to the side, talking about something… probably bugs.

Takimaru and Shibuki were sitting at the table, talking with each other.

Neji was leaning to the wall with his arms crossed and eyes closed as Lee was punching and kicking the air, and Tenten was sitting on the couch, sharpening her weapons.

Hinata was sitting at the table and staring towards the arm wrestle match between Sasuke and Naruto out of the corner of her eyes and was silently cheering on Naruto.

Gaara, Temari and Kankuro were standing by themselves in a corner of the room, while Kabuto and his team seemed to be doing the same on the other side of the room.

Then the door opened and Anko stepped out.

"Alright people, follow me!" She said before Sasuke finally beat Naruto in the arm wrestling match and everyone followed Anko up to one of the top floors.

They entered into a large, rectangular room, and at the end of it was Hiruzen standing with the exam proctors standing next to him and behind him from left-to-right were Suien, Orochimaru, Baki, Kitsuchi, Kurenai, Guy, Kakashi, Asuma and Kabuto's sensei.

Anko walked up next to Hiruzen as the nine teams all lined up with the ones that could be considered the team leaders at the front, and from left-to-right, they were Dosu, Gaara, Kabuto, Neji, Kurotsuchi, Naruto, Fu, Kiba and Ino.

"Congratulations to you all on passing the second exam!" Hiruzen said as he looked at the nine teams that were in front of him.

_'Heh… we started with 84 applicants… it's amazing that 27 of them actually made it. I said I would pare their numbers down to less than half, but really I was only expecting a single digit figure…'_ Anko thought as she hadn't gotten time to look them over when she brought them there.

_'Still so many competitors… what a drag!'_ Shikamaru thought.

"Sasuke-kun's team made it!" Ino whispered.

"Your students made an impressive showing! I wonder how much of it was dumb luck… not that it matters. My team is bound to knock them out in the next round. At the next level, it will be all about their abilities… or lack thereof. Ah, well… sometimes being young is all about learning to deal with heart-break, eh, Kakashi?" Guy said.

"Huh? I'm sorry… did you say something?" Kakashi asked as he looked at him.

_'Heh… good one… as annoying as ever, Kakashi… you always did try to get under my skin with your aloof act.'_ Guy thought.

_'Wow, so that's Guy-sensei's archrival… man, he beats Guy-sensei hands down in the looks department…'_ Tenten thought.

_'None of the other senseis are as cool as Guy-sensei. Not even close! He's the man! Just wait, Guy-sensei! I'll make you proud!'_ Lee thought.

_'So now only the real players are left. And Uchiha Sasuke made it, eh…?'_ Neji thought.

_'Amazing… there were 28 three-man teams at the start, and only nine teams finished.'_ Temari thought.

_'So you came through without a scratch after all, Gaara…'_ Baki thought.

_'Akamaru's acting strange…'_ Kurenai thought as she noticed the small dog, shivering in Kiba's jacket.

_'Those guys from Sunagakure…'_ Kiba thought as he glared towards them out of the corner of his eye. After they had been defeated by Fu's team, they witnessed a short battle in which three strong-looking Ame-nins were massacred by Gaara.

'_Naruto-kun…'_ Hinata thought as she stared towards the blond.

"Man, I can't believe that so many teams made it, this is gonna be a pain." Takimaru whispered.

"Hey, don't worry about it. We've got Fu-san, remember? I doubt any of the other teams has a Jinchuriki." Shibuki whispered. **(Kurama no Kyubi: Oh, you have no idea.)**

'_Gaara, Jinchuriki of the Ichibi… And Naruto, Jinchuriki of the Kyubi. I can't wait till I see what kind of abilities you've got.'_ Fu thought as she looked at the two Jinchuriki respectively.

'_So that's the Hokage? Well, I suppose he's younger than jiji, but still…'_ Kurotsuchi thought.

'_Kurotsuchi, it's time to show them that Iwa is at the top of the shinobi world.'_ Kitsuchi thought.

"Hmm… I got a bad feeling about this…" Sasuke said quietly as he put his hand over the mark that Orochimaru had given him.

_'It's astonishing that so many of them survived… and even more astounding that the majority of the survivors were culled from the ranks of the most raw recruits!'_ Hiruzen thought before he started explaining the Chunin exams**. (Kurama no Kyubi: I'm not gonna bother with this explanation since it's mostly canon. Besides, I'm too lazy right now.)**

When Hiruzen was done explaining the exams, a Jonin proctor suddenly appeared, kneeling before him.

"… Forgive my interruption, Hokage-sama, but… if you don't mind handing the rest of the proceedings over to me, Gekko Hayate, proctor of the third exam." The Jonin, now identified as Hayate said.

"Go ahead." Hiruzen said and Hayate stood up before turning around.

"Good to meet you, everyone… I'm Hayate. Uhhh… before we start the exam… cough… I must ask you to do something for me… cough." Hayate said.

_'What the…?'_ Zaku thought.

'_Is that guy sick or something?'_ Fu thought.

"Ummm… you see… there are some preliminaries to the exam proper… and whether you proceed to the main exam is contingent on how well you manage those." Hayate said.

"Preliminaries?" Kurotsuchi asked.

"Preliminaries…? Like what?" Shikamaru yelled.

"Hayate-sensei… I don't understand what you mean by preliminaries. Why can't all of the remaining applicants just proceed directly to the next exam?" Sakura asked.

"Well… I don't want to say that the first two exams weren't demanding enough… but the truth is… cough… we still have too many applicants. Under the traditional rules of the exam, we have to have a preliminary test… to reduce the number of applicants who'll proceed to the third exam." Hayate said.

"B-but…" Sakura started, but Hayate cut her off.

"As Hokage-sama mentioned, a number of honored guests will be observing you during the third exam… so we must make the exam intense, tight, and fast-moving. Hmmm… so anyway… now that you know something of what it's really all about… anyone who doesn't feel up to the challenge, either physically or mentally, can walk away. Just take one step forward… cough, cough, because the preliminaries start… right now!" Hayate said.

"NOW?" Kiba yelled.

"Well… I'm outta here." Kabuto said as he raised his hand.

"Ummm… cough, cough, aren't you… Yakushi Kabuto of Konoha? Okay, you can go." Hayate said as he looked at a dossier list he was holding before saying "Uhhh… in case I forgot to mention it, from here on in, you fight as individuals… cough, cough… not as members of teams. So you can make the decision that's right for you without worrying about anyone else. So… anyone else want out? Show of hands..?"

"… Well there's a familiar face, eh? If memory serves me, this is about the same point at which he dropped out last time… I wonder… what on earth could he be thinking? Yakushi Kabuto… according to his dossier… he's tried and failed six times now." Anko said as she looked at the dossier list.

"What sort of record has he got?" Hiruzen asked.

"Ordinary… unremarkable. In his academy days, he was an average student, earning mediocre grades… it took him three attempts to pass his finals and graduate. Since then, he's completed 2 C-ranked and 14 D-ranked missions. There's nothing noteworthy in the records of any of his battles… except…" Anko said.

"Except…?" Hiruzen asked.

"… Except for something that happened before he even entered the academy. Do you remember the tale… of a boy who was brought back from that battle at Kikyo Pass?" Anko asked.

"I do… yes… if I remember correctly, the story was that a Jonin of the medical corps… took in an enemy youth who had survived on the battlefield. And he's that child…?" Hiruzen said.

_'You seem very dedicated. I wish I could tell you, "just leave everything to me"…'_ Kabuto thought as he looked towards Orochimaru before he looked towards Naruto and Sasuke _'… Naruto-kun, Sasuke-kun… I would have liked to hang out with you a while longer… but if I keep going… my old blood might start bubbling up… fun's fun, but technically I'm a spy here… and now is hardly the time to blow my cover. Besides, this is perfect… if YOU'RE going to be a member of the audience… then I can hand off the intelligence-gathering work to you… Orochimaru-sama!'_

_'As my undercover agent, you've had to wear the mask of a false life since you were a mere child. The strain of always holding in your true self…'_ Orochimaru thought.

"… Has it become too much for you? Are you ready to snap? Is your roiling blood aching to flow free? Get a hold of yourself! Have you forgotten Orochimaru-sama's orders?" One of Kabuto's teammates asked quietly.

"You guys can take it from here. Especially you, Yoroi… with your abilities, this next bit should be a piece of cake! It's the perfect opportunity for a real show of sheer brute strength! Considering how you resent my recent promotion, I would have thought you'd jump at the chance." Kabuto said.

"Hm… you may think you're Orochimaru-sama's favorite… but don't push it, gaki." Yoroi said.

"I got it… loud and clear, coach!" Kabuto said before leaving as he _thought 'I look forward with pleasure to the day of our next meeting, Sasuke-kun… you too, Naruto-kun.'_

_'I'll ensure there'll be nothing for you to take pleasure in later… sure as my name is Yoroi.' _Yoroi thought.

Sasuke looked over his shoulder at Kabuto's retreating back until he suddenly felt a wave of pain coming from the curse mark on his neck.

_'… Ohh! Another wave of pain…'_ Sasuke thought as he brought his hand up to the mark.

_'Oh, Sasuke-kun… I was afraid of this…'_ Sakura thought.

"So, uhhh… cough, looks like no one else is bailing out." Hayate said.

"S-Sasuke-kun… maybe you should quit, too!" Sakura said and Naruto turned around to see that Sasuke was holding his neck in pain.

"Sakura-chan's right, Sasuke. That mark is dangerous, and there's no telling what could happen if you go and fight someone." Naruto said as he had seen a dark chakra radiating from the mark with his Rinnegan after Sasuke had woken up.

"Shut up…!" Sasuke said.

"Sasuke-kun, I know… that you're just barely able to contain the pain!" Sakura said.

"I said…" Sasuke started, but he was cut off by Sakura.

"You leave me no choice. If you won't listen to reason… I'm going to tell all the senseis about that mark! And then…" Sakura said as she began to raise her hand, but Sasuke grabbed her wrist to stop her.

"Keep your mouth shut! Not a word about the mark!" Sasuke said.

"Why do you always have to act so strong? I can't bear to watch you suffer, Sasuke!" Sakura said.

"It's my decision… and it's none of your business! This is my burden to bear… alone. This is more than just a test for me… and I don't care whether I achieve the level of Chunin or not. "Am I strong?" Finding that out is all that matters to me now. I'm here to test myself against the best of the best. And the best opponents I could find are all around us, here and now. Not even for your sake… will I turn away from the path that leads to my dream!" Sasuke said.

"Hey, teme! Why the heck are you trying to act so cool?" Naruto asked.

"Naruto… you're one of the ones that I want to fight!" Sasuke said just before he felt another wave of pain.

"It's just as I'd feared…" Hiruzen said as he observed team 7.

"What can we do?" Ibiki asked.

"Pull him out of the exam… quarantine him under the guard of ANBU agents." Anko said.

"And you really think he'll just go quietly if you order that?" Anko then turned around to see Kakashi "Keep in mind… he's a member of the Uchiha clan."

"Don't talk nonsense! I'll stop him by force if I have to. Any attempts he makes to manipulate his own chakra… will provoke a reaction from that curse mark, forcibly drawing out and draining all his strength. It's the mark of a forbidden art, which debilitates the body of the practitioner! It's a miracle that a child like him is able to bear it at all. By all rights, it should have killed him already." Anko said before turning to the old Hokage "Hokage-sama!"

"I am still concerned about what Orochimaru said… let young Sasuke proceed as he is, and we shall keep our eyes on him." Hiruzen said.

"H-Hokage-sama…!" Anko said.

"However, if the curse mark begins to spread and cause his power to rampage, then we shall indeed take steps to restrain him." Hiruzen said.

"Yes, sir." Ibiki said.

"Ahhh… well then… we'll begin the preliminaries… which consist of individual combat matches, as though this were part of a tournament. As there are a total of 26 combatants remaining. We will hold a total of 13 bouts. Ummm… and the victors of those bouts will advance to the third exam. This is no-holds-barred combat. Each pair of combatants will fight until one of them is dead or unconscious… or admits defeat. Cough. As soon as you sense that your opponent is overpowering you, immediately concede your loss… if you value your life. Uhhh… since we don't want a total blood-bath on our hands, there may be cases… cough, where we ascertain that there is an undisputed winner and step in to end the match. But don't count on that. From here on out, the key to your fate is held in…" Hayate said.

"Open it." Anko spoke into a mic and a wooden board that was on the wall opened up to reveal an electronic score-board.

"Ummmm… this electronic score-board. At the start of every round, we will display the names of the two combatants competing in that match… cough, so, ummm… not to hurry you all to the slaughter… but let's begin. We'll now announce the first two names." Hayate said and everyone waited for the names to come up. **(Kurama no Kyubi: Some of the battles will be just like canon, I won't go into detail with those, just so you know… except for the important ones that is.)**

**Uchiha Sasuke**

**Vs**

**Akado Yoroi**

_'Hmm… right off the bat, eh?'_ Sasuke thought.

_'Heh… I couldn't have planned it better!'_ Yoroi thought.

_'Oh, please no! Not Sasuke-kun!'_ Sakura thought.

"Will the individuals whose names are listed on the board come forward now…?" Hayate asked and Sasuke and Yoroi stepped forward and turned to face each other as Hayate continued "Akado Yoroi, Uchiha Sasuke… you two have been selected to compete in the first bout. Any objections?"

"None…" Yoroi said.

"I'm good…" Sasuke said.

_'The only thing I can do now… is just stand here and watch over him. Sasuke-kun…!'_ Sakura thought.

_'Sasuke! If you plan to fight me later… don't you dare lose now!'_ Naruto thought.

_'There's something wrong with Sasuke-kun…'_ Ino thought.

_'… It's the curse mark that's causing it!'_ Dosu thought.

_'Good luck, Sasuke!'_ Lee thought.

_'Show us what you're made of!'_ Neji thought.

'_I want to fight you later, Sasuke. So don't you dare lose.'_ Kurotsuchi said.

_'… The pain's not getting any better…'_ Sasuke thought as the curse mark continued to cause him pain.

_'Heh… looks like the boy's in pain!'_ Yoroi thought.

"Uhhhhh… it's time for the first round to commence… all right? Cough. Everyone other than the two combatants should move up to the upper gallery now." Hayate said and everyone walked towards the stairs to the upper gallery. Teams 7, 8, 10, Guy and Kurotsuchi went up to the right side while teams Gaara, Dosu, Kabuto and Fu went up to the left side.

"Sasuke… don't use the Sharingan." Kakashi said as he passed the Uchiha.

"… How did you know?" Sasuke asked.

"If the curse mark on your neck is allowed to run rampant… the consequences will change your life." Kakashi said.

"… I figured." Sasuke said.

"If they see any sign of that, the match will be suspended. And I'll be forced to stop you. Please don't forget that." Kakashi said before walking further.

_'… Suspended?'_ Sasuke thought before bringing his hand up to the mark _'The mark seems to respond to my chakra. If I use my chakra carelessly, the mark will take over my psyche, calling upon and expending all of the power I have… so… for the purposes of this match… not only is the Sharingan verboten… but I'll also have to be restrained in using my chakra even for the normal jutsus!'_

_'Heh heh… what a pity that Yoroi's talents… are the very worst you could face, Sasuke-kun!'_ Orochimaru thought.

_'Now… how should I do this?'_ Sasuke thought.

_'Sasuke… don't overextend yourself…' _Kakashi thought.

"All right… please begin!" Hayate said and Yoroi made the tora hand sign.

"Shall I start?" He asked.

"Go for it." Sasuke said and Yoroi's right hand was covered in blue chakra as he pulled three shuriken out of his weapons pouch and threw them towards the Uchiha.

Sasuke pulled out a kunai and used it to deflect the shuriken back towards Yoroi as he felt a renewed wave of pain in his neck and he tripped as Yoroi dodged the shuriken. Yoroi then appeared over the Uchiha and attempted to punch him, but Sasuke rolled out of the way and the Oto spy hit the floor instead.

Sasuke then stuck his kunai into the floor and used his feet to push Yoroi's arm so that he fell down on the floor, but he then grabbed Sasuke's t-shirt, just below the collar.

_'My strength… it's fading?'_ Sasuke thought as he tried to push Yoroi's hand back.

Yoroi then brought his arm up and brought his elbow hard down on Sasuke's stomach before punching the Uchiha away.

_'Wh-why…? Where did all my strength go?_' Sasuke thought as Yoroi leaped forward and grabbed his forehead.

"SASUKE-KUN!" Sakura yelled as Sasuke tried to push back Yoroi's arm, but he felt his strength suddenly leave him and his arms fell lump on the floor.

_'This is…!'_ Naruto thought as he activated his eyes to see that Yoroi was absorbing the Uchiha's chakra and the blond yelled "Sasuke! He's absorbing your chakra! Get him away from you!"

_'Exactly! Yoroi's unholy gift is the ability to absorb another's chakra! It's a brilliant art whereby simply pressing the palm of his hand against an opponent's body gives him the ability to consume their mental and physical energies. And once all your chakra has been devoured, Sasuke-kun… you will have no recourse but to call upon the power of my curse mark! That's it… open yourself up… to all that delicious power! If you try to resist this path, you will surely die!'_ Orochimaru thought.

"Ohh… you…" Sasuke said before he kicked Yoroi away "… son of a…"

"Heh heh… imagine a little vermin like you… having any strength left to oppose me." Yoroi said as Sasuke got up on his feet.

_'That was… too close… if he makes contact with me again, I won't even have enough energy to move… it's what he's after… to keep me within his reach… this is my last chance… but how do I…?'_ Sasuke thought.

"Uchiha Sasuke… _This_ is all he can do?" Gaara asked no one in particular.

'_Sasuke…!'_ Lee thought.

"How can you call yourself Uchiha Sasuke? You're a disgrace to… to yourself! Aren't you embarrassed to have everyone see you as a big loser?" Naruto yelled, and Sasuke looked up towards him before noticing Lee who was standing next to the blond.

'_That's…! That's it!'_ The Uchiha thought.

"Heh… You couldn't have picked a worse time to let your mind wander!" Yoroi said as he started charging towards Sasuke while thinking '_Now I'll absorb all of his chakra! This is it!'_

'_I guess this is the end…'_ Hayate thought, but then Sasuke suddenly vanished before appearing beneath Yoroi and kicking the Oto spy in the jaw, sending him into the air.

'_That's my…!'_ Lee thought.

'_Nani…?'_ Guy thought.

"After this, I'll limit myself to my own special skills, but for now…!" Sasuke said as he appeared behind Yoroi "It's over!"

"Oh! Kagebuyo…?" Yoroi said.

"Eat this!" Sasuke said before he suddenly felt pain in his neck as the curse mark started spreading across the Uchiha's body '_Crap…! The same way, every time…! It hurts… I'm not just gonna… lie back and let it…'_

'_He's reached his limit.'_ Kakashi thought.

'… _consume me!'_ Sasuke thought and the marks suddenly receded.

'_The curse marks are… receding!'_ Anko thought in surprise.

"Let's go." Sasuke said before moving to kick Yoroi in the stomach, but the older ninja blocked the kick with his arm.

"Stupid amateur." Yoroi said, but then Sasuke suddenly flipped around in midair.

"Stupid amateur, indeed." Kakashi said before Sasuke hit Yoroi in the jaw with his left hand, sending the Oto spy down towards the floor. The Uchiha then flipped around again before delivering a powerful punch to Yoroi's stomach before flipping around once more.

"And now… Shishirendan!" The Uchiha called out as he delivered a powerful kick to Yoroi's stomach just as they reached the floor, knocking the Oto spy out before Hayate walked over to him to examine him.

'_I can tell without even looking…'_ He thought before saying "I'm halting this match before it goes any further. In other words… Uchiha Sasuke is the champion of the first battle… and advances past the preliminaries to the next level!"

"He did it!" Naruto yelled before Sasuke fell down on the floor as Kakashi appeared behind him.

"Hey. Well done." He said before thinking '_It looked like the techniques he used prior to the Shishirendan were derived from Guy's fighting style… He must have used his Sharingan to memorize those moves when he sparred with that Lee kid.'_

'_Lee… I owe my life to what I was able to draw from you. If I hadn't seen your moves up close when we went head-to-head, this one would have turned out really badly.'_ Sasuke thought before he felt a sting of pain '_But that trick really wiped me out… I guess it's not something I can use too often.'_

'_I get it. In just one encounter, he managed to acquire and master the move I used on him. Quite a secret weapon… Sasuke isn't someone to underestimate. He'll only get stronger as time goes on… I feel… a little…afraid.'_ Lee thought.

'_The moves of the Renge Series require a body that's been gradually trained and honed over a long period. The Renge is not a simple thing that can be mastered in a single day, even through the use of the Sharingan. And the expressiveness of that final move… Like student, like teacher, eh, Kakashi? Are all your kids the same kind of punk you were?'_ Guy thought.

'_There's last year's top rookie, Hyuga Neji… and it looks like this year's will be Uchiha Sasuke… if they fought each other, who would win?'_ Tenten thought.

'_He's quite a boy… coming into the full flower of his Sharingan ability at such a young age. No wonder people say "Beware the fearsome power of the blood of the Uchiha".'_ Kakashi thought.

'_Amazing. The power of that curse mark should have full sway over him… yet he suppressed it by an act of sheer will.'_ Anko thought.

_'Not this again…'_ Kankuro thought as he noticed the way Gaara was looking at Sasuke.

"If it happened any other way, it wouldn't be such fun." Zaku said.

"Ooooooh! Sasuke-kun! You're the best!" Ino said.

'… _That's it. We're done for!'_ Shikamaru thought.

"W-wow…" Hinata said.

"Come on! It wasn't that great!" Kiba said.

_'Brilliant…_' Orochimaru thought as he licked his lips.

'_Heh, he wasn't so tough. I don't get why the Uchiha are so feared.'_ Kurotsuchi thought.

'_Hmm… if that's the best Konoha's Genin can do, then they won't survive these exams.'_ Kitsuchi thought.

"Uchiha Sasuke…" A member of Konoha's medical corps said as two others carried Yoroi away "… We must escort you, too, and put you under the care of the medical corps… so you can get the best possible treatment."

"You have no idea what you'd be getting yourselves into. I'll handle him." Kakashi said before he leaned down to Sasuke's ear "He can come with me right now, and… I'll seal away the curse mark."

"Well then… right! Let's get the next match going." Hayate said.

"Can't this wait? I want to watch everyone else compete." Sasuke said.

"No! Don't let your emotions cloud your judgment! This thing is spreading like a disease, and it's already close to the point of no return. I let you have your own way once, and it's only made you greedy." Kakashi said before he and Sasuke started walking away as everyone else were waiting for the next two names to come up.

**Fu**

**Vs**

**Aburame Shino**

"Well, what'd you know? Seems like I'll have to fight the Aburame again." Fu said.

'_Seems like it's Fu's turn. I wonder what kind of abilities she has.'_ Naruto thought as Fu shunshined in what appeared to be a swirl of bugs.

_'Sasuke-kun…'_ Sakura thought as she looked down towards her crush.

"Uhhh… all right, everyone. It's time… for the second match of the prelims to begin!" Hayate said as Fu and Shino had come down from the upper gallery.

"I hope Shino-kun's up to this…" Hinata said.

"Don't worry, last time she was just lucky that he couldn't use his bugs, this time's different. And besides, out of all the people here, Shino's the only one I wouldn't want to go up against." Kiba said.

"Okay… you may begin." Hayate said.

'_A member of the Aburame clan, huh? Wonder how long he'll fare against Fu.'_ Suien thought.

"You _do_ realize how futile it is for someone like yourself to go up against me, right?" Fu said.

"Yes, but I'll still fight you. Why? Because I'm curious about your abilities." Shino said.

"Well, in that case, I won't be holding back." Fu said before a sword of water suddenly appeared in her hand as she said "Takigakure-Ryu: Mizukiri no Yaiba!" She then charged at Shino before swinging the sword as she reached him, but he just turned into a swarm of bugs '_A Mushi Bunshin?'_

Forest of Death, tower, Kakashi and Sasuke

Sasuke was sitting shirt-less on the floor as Kakashi wrote seals that went from Sasuke's curse mark and out in 10 different directions.

"That's it!" Kakashi said as he finished writing the seals and he stood behind the Uchiha as he weaved a series of hand signs "Just a little longer and it'll be all done."

"Fuja Hoin!" Kakashi said as he slammed his hand down on the curse mark and all of the seals suddenly moved up the Uchiha's body before forming a small ring around the mark.

"Even if the curse mark awakens again… the power of this Fuja Hoin seal should contain it. Sasuke… the foundation of the seal's power is the strength of your own will. You have to want it to work… and you must believe in your own power to control it, if you don't… the curse could have its way again!" Kakashi said before Sasuke fell unconscious "You're so worn out, I barely recognize you."

"So… you've mastered the art of sealing, Kakashi-kun?" A voice from behind him said and he slowly turned around "… Looks like you're all grown up."

"… You're…" Kakashi said as he came face-to-face with none other than Orochimaru.

"It's been a long time…" Orochimaru said.

"Orochimaru…" Kakashi said.

"… Pardon my rudeness, Kakashi-kun, but… I have no use for you. I'm here about the boy behind you." Orochimaru said.

"What do you want with Sasuke…?" Kakashi asked.

"Oh, you know how it is… two guys have something… and a third one's just got to get it, too! You haven't had it for very long yourself, you know. Know what it is yet?" Orochimaru said and Kakashi realized what it was he was after "… It's… the Sharingan! I must possess… Uchiha blood!"

"What for…?" Kakashi asked.

"… The newly created village of Otogakure…. That is my home, you see… is it becoming clear?" Orochimaru said.

"So it's just your greed… and delusions of grandeur." Kakashi said.

"I suppose you could say that… good help is so hard to find these days… and I need all sorts of pawns at my disposal." Orochimaru said.

"So, you think that Sasuke… is one of your pawns?" Kakashi asked.

"Oh, he's a very special pawn… a real keeper… unlike the boys who are going through the rigors of the exam process right now. Those boys… are disposable." Orochimaru said and Kakashi weaved a couple of hand signs before holding his right arm down and putting his left hand on the underside of his elbow.

"Stay away from Sasuke. Even if you are one of those three ninja… the man I am today can take you down!" Kakashi said as lightning appeared in his right hand and the sound of a thousand birds filled the room. But then, Orochimaru started laughing and Kakashi asked "What's so funny?"

"You say one thing… and do another." Orochimaru said.

"What?" Kakashi asked.

"The curse-binding seal you placed upon Sasuke-kun was futile! When a heart is sufficiently focused and ruthless in its desires… then, for good or evil, the end will justify any means. Sasuke-kun possesses just such a heart… the heart of an avenger." Orochimaru said.

"So that's how you got your hooks into him… but Sasuke's not…" Kakashi said as he deactivated the Raikiri, but Orochimaru cut him off as he started to walk away.

"A day will come when he will seek me out… hungry for power! Meanwhile… I believe you were offering to kill me. Care to try? Or are you all talk?" He said before he suddenly sent a wave of killing-Intent at the Jonin while continuing to walk away.

_'Did I miscalculate? What kind of fool am I?'_ Kakashi thought, overwhelmed by the amount of Killing-Intent, the snake let out.

Forest of Death, tower, arena

Fu was currently surrounded by Shino's bugs, it seemed that she wasn't able to turn them against him after all. In fact, what Shino didn't know was that – even for the Nanabi Jinchuriki – it was extremely difficult to take control over insects that already had a master, and Fu wasn't quite at that level yet.

"You're completely surrounded. It would be wise to withdraw from the match." Shino said, but he was surprised – though he didn't show it – when Fu smiled before dispersing into a swarm of insects.

"Heh. I've heard that those of the Aburame clan always fight with their all, and never holds back. If that's true then this battle's already over." Everyone looked up to see that Fu was in a crouched position on the ceiling, And two bug-like wings appeared to have grown out of her back and her eyes were now a crimson red.

Fu kicked off of the ceiling and shot towards Shino at an unbelievable speed, and before anyone knew it, the Aburame was lying unconscious on the floor as Fu was standing over him as her wings retracted and her eyes changed back to orange.

"Way to go, Fu-san!" Shibuki yelled.

"Man, it always scares me how fast she can move in that form." Takimaru said.

'_The reason she can be so fast shouldn't be too surprising. When using her wings she can gain a considerable amount of speed, similar to the speed of Konoha's foremost Taijutsu expert.'_ Suien thought.

"The winner is Fu!" Hayate announced.

"Shino-kun…" Hinata said as the Aburame was carried out by the medical corps.

'_Whoa, she's already that far with controlling her Biju's chakra?'_ Naruto thought.

"Yo!" Kakashi said as he appeared.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto said.

"What do you mean, "Yo"? Kakashi-sensei, tell us about Sasuke-kun! Is he all right?" Sakura yelled.

"He's fine… sound asleep in the infirmary even as we speak." Kakashi said before thinking _'under the guard of an ANBU team… but asleep.'_

Sakura let out a sigh of relief just as Naruto noticed that the next two names had come up on the score-board.

**Tsurugi Misumi**

**Vs**

**Kankuro**

_'My turn… at last!'_ Kankuro thought before he walked down.

_'Kankuro… isn't taking this seriously at all.'_ Baki thought.

_'Fool!'_ Gaara thought.

_'Him again!'_ Naruto thought as he recognized the older boy.

"All right… then… you may begin." Hayate said as the two competitors had gotten down.

"Even though you're just a little brat… I'm not letting down my guard like Yoroi did. In fact, let me make one thing perfectly clear… you'd be better off forfeiting the match before you get hurt. This won't take long at all." Misumi said.

"I agree… I'll be finished with you in no time." Kankuro said as he put down the bandaged object that he previously had on his back.

The battle didn't last very long as Misumi wrapped himself around Kankuro and squeezed until the Suna-nin's neck snapped. But it appeared to only be a puppet that had been temporarily altered to look like Kankuro while the real Kankuro was hiding in the bandages and he made the puppet squeeze Misumi instead.

"Due to Misumi's inability to fight back… the winner of the match is Kankuro!" Hayate said.

"Two of them against one guy… Isn't that against the rules? Isn't it, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked.

"Not in this case, Naruto. The "other guy" is just some kind of golem…" Kakashi said.

"Kugutsu no jutsu! He manipulates a lifeless doll by projecting the power of his chakra! The golem is a weapon, just like shuriken." Sakura explained.

"In any event… it's time for the fourth match." Hayate said.

"This is like a never-ending freak show!" Naruto said.

"Look who's talking." Kurotsuchi deadpanned as she was standing next to the blond.

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" Naruto asked as Sakura giggled.

"I don't think you'll be laughing in a minute, Sakura… look." Kakashi said as he pointed up to the score-board and Sakura's eyes widened.

**Haruno Sakura**

**Vs**

**Yamanaka Ino**

Shortly afterwards were the two kunoichi standing in front of each other in the middle of the room.

"So, Sakura… it's you and me… going head-to-head. I never saw it coming." Ino said before Sakura took of her Hitai-ate.

"Wh-what the…?" Naruto said.

_'Yeah, Ino… what's your plan?'_ Asuma thought.

"Understand this… I'm never letting you anywhere near Sasuke-kun." Sakura said.

"WHAT…?" Ino yelled.

"You're not even his type! And I'm not the weak, needy little girl I used to be. You're not even on my radar now." Sakura said.

"Sakura… I think you've forgotten who you're talking to. Don't cop an attitude with me, you little crybaby." Ino said.

"Aw, man! Sakura just crossed the line. That Ino chick scares me silly!" Naruto said.

"Hmm… Sakura's not trying to throw her weight around… and she's not the kind who'd bully someone just to be cruel. She's just making sure Ino is too riled up to think of going easy on her… for old time's sake." Kakashi said.

"What are they getting so intense about?" Naruto asked and Kakashi sighed.

_'He just can't see that he's exactly the same way when it comes to Sasuke.'_ Kakashi thought before saying "Well, Naruto… rivalry is a tricky business… not that I would know." Earning him a glare from Guy.

_'I get it… Sakura. Let's do this fair and square!'_ Ino thought as she took of her Hitai-ate and both her and Sakura wrapped them around their foreheads.

Unlike the last fight, this one lasted much longer. Sakura and Ino seemed to be equal throughout the match until Ino – seemingly out of madness – used a kunai to cut her hair and threw it over the floor before sending chakra through it to paralyze Sakura as she did the Shintenshin. The battle seemed lost for Sakura, but thanks to Naruto, Sakura's will – or more specifically, inner Sakura – managed to force Ino to release the technique and she returned to her own body.

Sakura and Ino were now at their limits and they charged at eachother with all the strength they had left. They were both knocked back, but after a couple of seconds, Sakura got up on her feet.

"The winner is Haruno Sakura." Hayate said before Asuma shunshined down to pick up Ino as Sakura walked back up.

"It's okay…" Asuma said before shunshining up to where Shikamaru and Choji were standing.

"Hey… Ino!" Shikamaru yelled as Asuma appeared and put the girl down.

"Are you all right, Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked as Sakura came towards where he was standing.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Sakura said.

"It was about time you finished that fight, tree-hugger." Kurotsuchi said.

"Hey, Kurotsuchi-san, look." Bakutsuchi said as he pointed towards the score-board and her eyes followed his fingers to see that the next two combatants were…

**Kurotsuchi**

**Vs**

**Tenten**

Soon Kurotsuchi and Tenten were standing in front of each other in the middle of the room.

"The fifth match of the preliminaries… Kurotsuchi against Tenten. Please step forward." Hayate said.

"Hey, look… a candidate from Iwa, this should be fun." Neji said.

"Yeah, go Tenten! GO!" Lee yelled.

"Begin!" Hayate said.

Jumping back, Tenten grabbed a kunai from her pouch and threw them at Kurotsuchi, but the Iwa-nin dodged the sharp projectile before weaving several hand signs.

"Katon: Ryuka no jutsu!" The head of a dragon made of fire came out of Kurotsuchi's mouth as it shot towards Tenten, but the weapon mistress managed to dodge it.

"Tenten, use the power of your youth!" Lee yelled.

"That's the spirit! Keep cheering her on!" Guy said.

"Come on, Kurotsuchi-san, show her what you're made of!" Bakutsuchi yelled.

Tenten then pulled out two scrolls from her pockets before putting them down on the floor and weaving a hand sign.

"Soshoryu!" She called out and in a puff of smoke, two smoke dragons shot skyward while spiraling around each other before the smoke dispersed to reveal that the "dragons" were actually the scrolls.

Tenten then jumped up into the air before hitting the seals on the scrolls to summon weapons and she threw said weapons down towards Kurotsuchi before more weapons appeared as she touched the seals again.

"Earth Style: Earth Dome Jutsu!" Kurotsuchi called out as she was done with the hand sign sequence and she slammed her arms down on the floor before half a dome appeared over her and blocked all of the weapons. After the barrage was over, she quickly weaved a series of hand signs before jumping out of her hiding place.

"Yoton: Sekkaigyo no Jutsu!" She called out the name of her favorite technique before spitting a bullet of quicklime at Tenten's feet, sticking her to the ground.

"Suiton: Mizurappa!" Kurotsuchi then spat a large volume of water at the quicklime, causing it to harden.

"I'm not done yet! Not as long as I can still move my arms!" Tenten said as she pulled out several kunai and shuriken and threw them at the Iwa-nin.

However, Kurotsuchi dodged the weapons before doing another Sekkaigyo followed by Mizurappa to make sure that Tenten wouldn't be able to use her arms.

"Since Tenten isn't able to fight back, the winner is Kurotsuchi!" Hayate announced.

"Impossible!" Lee said.

"Alright, Kuro-chan won. Dattebayo!" Naruto exclaimed.

'_Hmmm… Kuro-_chan_, huh?'_ Kakashi thought as he looked down on his student from the corner of his eye.

"Yeah, Way to go, Kurotsuchi-san!" Bakutsuchi yelled.

'_I'm surprised. Normally, Kurotsuchi would have finished off her opponent, especially since it was a Konoha tree-hugger. Strange.'_ Kitsuchi thought.

"Okay! My turn! I'm good to go. Who thinks he can take me?" Naruto yelled.

"Who's next? I have a feeling it's me!" Lee yelled.

"No! Are you guys stupid or something? I'm the one who's gonna be next!" Bakutsuchi yelled.

**Nara Shikamaru**

**Vs**

**Kin Tsuchi**

"You've gotta be kidding me!" Bakutsuchi said.

"Aw, man!" Lee said.

"Rats!" Naruto said.

"Me, eh?" Shikamaru said.

"He manipulates shadows… be wary of them." Dosu said as Kin started walking towards the stairs.

"Heh… It'll take a lot more than a stupid technique like that to beat me!" Kin said.

"This is such a drag. And how embarrassing… being expected to fight a girl…" Shikamaru said as they stood in the center of the room.

"If that's the way you feel, I'll put you out of your misery quickly!" Kin said.

"Shikamaru, don't you dare lose!" Ino – who had recovered during the last battle – yelled.

_'Well… Ino's suddenly full of energy!'_ Choji thought.

_'Even though I learned about the strengths of the Oto ninja when we battled during the second exam… I don't have a clue about what this one's specialty is. On the other hand, she's had a good opportunity to observe me in action. But I wonder…'_ Shikamaru thought.

"Begin! Cough." Hayate said and the battle commenced.

This battle didn't last very long, Kin threw some senbon with bells attached to them and said senbons went into the wall behind Shikamaru. There were also threads attached to the bells and Shikamaru trailed his shadow under those threads so Kin wouldn't see him coming. When she was trapped by the Kagemane, Shikamaru threw a shuriken towards Kin, forcing her to do the same and just before the shuriken could hit, both of them leaned back and avoided the deadly throwing-stars, but Kin was too close to the wall and her head slammed into it so hard that she get knocked-out.

"A Shinobi uses everything to his advantage… including the terrain… and the architecture as well. You were locked into the same movements as I… but only one of us was close enough to the wall to give herself a concussion! The shuriken were just a distraction… so you wouldn't notice where you were standing." Shikamaru said.

"The winner is Nara Shikamaru!" Hayate said.

"Nice one, Shikamaru!" Ino yelled.

"Awesome!" Choji yelled.

"And the guy acts totally humble… man, that was cool!" Naruto said.

'_This year's rookies seem to be showing some promise, but…'_ Neji thought before staring towards Hinata out of the corner of his eye.

'_That guy's obviously a tactician. Not many people could come up with a strategy like that so quickly.'_ Takimaru thought before looking towards the score-board '_Now, who's next?'_

**Shibuki**

**Vs**

**Bakutsuchi**

"Ha! Finally, it's my turn" Bakutsuchi yelled before running down.

"Good luck, Shibuki-kun. Show that Iwa-nin what you're made of." Fu said as Shibuki started walking down.

"Don't worry, Fu-san. I'm intending to." Shibuki said and shortly after were the two Genin facing each other in the middle of the room.

"This'll be easy. You don't stand a chance against me." Bakutsuchi said.

"That overconfidence of yours will be your downfall." Shibuki said.

"Begin battle." Hayate said and Bakutsuchi instantly pulled out a kunai with an explosive tag attached to it, and he threw it at Shibuki.

"Mizu no Tatsumaki!" Shibuki called out as he had quickly weaved through the hand signs, and a vortex of water formed around him, protecting him from the kunai and the explosive tag which blew up as soon as it hit the water.

"Takigakure-Ryu: Mizukiri no Yaiba!" As the vortex of water collapsed down on the floor, Shibuki came forth with a sword of water in his hand, and quickly managed to cut down Bakutsuchi.

"The winner is Shibuki!" Hayate announced.

"Heh, I can't say I'm surprised. That guy was obviously the weakest of the Iwa-nins." Fu said.

"Ah! Bakutsuchi-san!" Akatsuchi yelled.

'_That fool. He's always so overconfident.'_ Kurotsuchi thought.

"All right! I know I'm gonna be next!" Naruto said before the next two names came up.

**Zaku**

**Vs**

**Temari**

"Heh. Who's that loser?" Zaku said.

"Finally my turn." Temari said and shortly after were both of them standing in the middle of the room, facing each other.

"You better give up now if you know what's good for you, blondie." Zaku said.

"I could say the same to you." Temari said.

"Begin!" Hayate said and Zaku quickly thrusted both of his arms forward.

"Don't worry, I'll end this quickly! Zankuha!" He said, sending a sound wave straight at Temari, but said blond managed to dodge it before grabbing the large fan, she had on her back.

She unfolded the fan and waved it, sending a gust of wind towards Zaku, sending the Oto-nin skidding backwards. Zaku then came to a halt and looked towards Temari.

"Let's see you get away from this! Zankukyokuha!" Zaku said as he sent super-sonic waves towards Temari.

"Kamaitachi no Jutsu!" Temari called out as she waved her fan and sent a powerful tornado of wind towards the super-sonic wave.

The two waves of strong winds collided, creating a mini-hurricane inside the room.

"That's some wind." Kurotsuchi said.

"Kamaitachi no Jutsu!" Temari said as she waved her fan, reinforcing her wind. Zaku, seeing Temari gaining the upper hand prepared to fire another wave of super-sonic waves.

"Zankukyokuha!" He called out, but then to everyone's surprise, his arms suddenly blew off and Temari's Kamaitachi hit him, sending him into the air before the winds dispersed and he fell down to the floor. **(Kurama no Kyubi: Remember, in Naruto canon, when the Oto-nins attacked team 7 and guys, Zaku once said that if he used Zankukyokuha, he'd risk his arms blowing off.)**

"The winner is Temari!" Hayate announced as the blond walked back up to where her teammates were waiting.

"Poor Zaku…" Dosu said to himself as some medics carried Zaku away before he thought '_We didn't know each other well… but he's a member of my team. And teammates look out for one-another. I'm making it my business to ensure there's payback.'_

_'The only ones who haven't competed yet are me, Hinata, Naruto, one of the Iwa-nins, one of the Oto-nins, Choji, Neji, One of the Taki-nins and Lee… And that guy from Suna… Please, just don't let it be the Suna guy…!'_ Kiba thought before the next two names came up.

**Uzumaki Naruto**

**Vs**

**Inuzuka Kiba**

"Well, it's about time! Now I can finally show everyone how strong I really am!" Naruto said.

"Oh, yes! Thank you! Thank you! We can take this guy, Akamaru!" Kiba yelled as Akamaru barked in agreement.

"If I'm not next… then it signifies that Sakura-san will hate me for having massive eyebrows. But if I'm next…" Lee muttered to himself.

"Well, good luck, Naruto-kun." Kurotsuchi said.

"Thanks." Naruto said before running down.

"Copy-nin, what have your student done to my daughter?" Kitsuchi asked as he looked at Kakashi.

"I wouldn't know." Kakashi said before thinking '_Good thing he doesn't know who Naruto's parents were.'_

"The ninth-round battle! Uzumaki Naruto versus Inuzuka Kiba!" Hayate said when Naruto and Kiba had gotten down.

"Woo-hoo! We lucked out, Akamaru! This fight is as good as won!" Kiba yelled and Akamaru barked in agreement.

"Don't be so cocky, you jerk!" Naruto yelled before pointing at Akamaru "Hey, Kiba! Send your little puppy dog home! C'mon… he'll get in our way!"

"Whatever! Akamaru fights with me, like always." Kiba said as he put the mutt down on the floor as said mutt barked.

"Naruto! Don't you dare let that loser beat you!" Sakura yelled.

_'… At last, here goes…'_ Kakashi thought.

_'Naruto, huh? Tough break, Kakashi. There's no way your boy can beat Kiba!'_ Kurenai thought.

_'I-I wish I could cheer for Naruto-kun… but Kiba-kun is my teammate, and I don't want to upset him! But…'_ Hinata thought.

"Don't worry, I'll be kind… I'll finish you off fast instead of dragging it out." Kiba said.

"Oh, yeah…? Well… right back atcha!" Naruto said.

"You're not fooling anyone with that cool act." Kiba said and Akamaru barked.

"Well then… BEGIN!" Hayate said.

"Ninpou: Shikyaku no jutsu." Kiba said before he got a slightly more feral appearance as he got down on all four "Here I come…"

He then charged at Naruto faster than most Genin in the room could see and elbowed Naruto in the gut. Almost everyone's eyes widened however when he puffed into smoke.

'_Nani?'_ Kiba thought.

"Over here, Kiba!" Kiba turned around to see Naruto standing behind him, holding his hands in the Hitsuji hand sign.

"Futon: Kamikaze no Jutsu!" Naruto called out, sending a wave of wind towards Kiba and Akamaru. The winds also sent the left-overs from Kurotsuchi's Mizurappa and Shibuki's Mizu no Tatsumaki up into the air. Kiba and Akamaru both dodged the wave of wind, just as Naruto had hoped as he went through another sequence of hand signs.

"Suiton: Suiryudan no Jutsu!" Suddenly the water particles in the air formed together to make a dragon of water which then headed towards Kiba and rammed said Inuzuka into the wall.

"Don't underestimate me, Kiba!" Naruto said.

"GO! NARUTO!" Sakura yelled.

"YEAH!" Lee yelled.

_'Oh, Naruto-kun!_' Hinata thought.

'_Heh. Naruto-kun, show them that you're not as weak as everyone seems to think you are. Show them all.'_ Kurotsuchi thought.

_'Ho ho… What an interesting development.'_ Hiruzen thought.

"I guess you've gotten stronger, eh…? So this time, I'm not holding back" Kiba said as he got up on his feet.

"Oh, yeah? Then… right back atcha!" Naruto said.

"Oh, N-Naruto-kun th…!" Hinata started, but she was cut off by Sakura.

"That was awesome, Naruto!" She yelled.

_'But… I thought that this Naruto kid was a total dobe!'_ Kurenai thought.

Kiba and Akamaru then charged at Naruto as Kiba pulled out a smoke bomb and threw it to the floor in front of Naruto and a plume of smoke appeared, enshrouding the blond.

What Kiba didn't notice however, was that Naruto made a Kage Bunshin and activated his eyes. The blond then ran out of the smoke as he noticed that Akamaru jumped at him, but luckily, thanks to his shared vision with the clone, he already knew that, and he punched the mutt so hard that he flew into the wall.

'_Nani? Did he already know that Akamaru was there? No, that's impossible.'_ Kiba thought as the smoke cloud dispersed and the clone puffed away.

What Kiba didn't notice was that he was standing right where Shibuki had done his Mizu no Tatsumaki earlier, and Naruto had deliberately left some water there.

"Hyoton: Sensatsu Suisho!" Naruto called out and the water around Kiba suddenly turned into several ice needles.

"What the…?" He didn't have time to finish as the needles shot at him. Kiba jumped into the air, but some of the needles still managed to hit him.

"Ouch! I'll get you for that, Naruto!" Kiba said as he landed.

"Oh? How?" Naruto asked as Akamaru ran over to his master.

"Let's do it, Akamaru! Jujin Bunshin!" Kiba said and Akamaru suddenly turned into a clone of Kiba.

The two of them then charged at Naruto, who easily managed to dodge all of their attacks, but eventually, Kiba figured that it was time to end the battle.

"Gatsuuga!" He called out as both he and Akamaru started spinning so fast that they looked like a pair of drills and they went straight for Naruto. They went straight through the blond before going all over the place, making sure that there were no escape routes. However, when Kiba and Akamaru eventually stopped their barrage of attacks and came to a halt, Naruto wasn't anywhere to be seen.

"What the…? Hey, where'd he go?" Kiba said as he and Akamaru looked around before a pair of hands suddenly burst out of the ground and grabbed Akamaru's legs before pulling him into the floor, so that only his head was visible. And at the same time, Naruto came out of the floor in front of him.

"What the…? You were in the floor?" Kiba said, surprised.

"Heh, Doton: Moguragakure no Jutsu." Naruto explained before weaving a series of hand signs "And now that the dog's taken care off, you're the only one left."

'_How did he know which one of them was Kiba and which one was Akamaru?'_ Kurenai wondered.

'_Hmmm… He must have been able to see the difference between them with his Rinnegan.'_ Kakashi thought.

"Futon: Fujin no Jutsu" Naruto called out before sending a stream of high-velocity wind covered with dust particles out of his mouth and towards Kiba, who barely managed to dodge it, but then, three Naruto clones came out of the winds and kicked the Inuzuka into the air.

"U… zu… ma…" The original as well as a fourth clone then came as the original used that clone as a spring-board to get above Kiba "… ki…" As the blond came up above the Inuzuka, he immediately kicked said Inuzuka back into the floor "… Naruto Rendan!"

"And the winner is Uzumaki Naruto!" Hayate said after having examined Kiba.

"Yeah!" Lee yelled.

"Oh, yeah! That feels good!" Sakura yelled.

"Incredible! Naruto beat Kiba!" Shikamaru yelled.

_'… Yes!'_ Hinata thought.

"Heh. That was easier than I thought it'd be." Naruto said as he walked up the stairs.

"Whoa. Naruto won." Akatsuchi said.

"Heh. What'd you expect?" Kurotsuchi asked.

'_And he didn't even use any of his Biju's chakra.'_ Fu thought.

Hinata walked down the stairs and towards some medics who were carrying Kiba and Akamaru away.

"Uh… um… th-this is a healing salve… for Kiba-kun… and Akamaru…" Hinata said as she held out an ointment.

"Nice of you to worry about everyone else… but save some of that concern for yourself! There are only eight of you left… you, Choji, Neji, Lee, one of the Oto ninja, one of the Iwa ninja, one of the Taki ninja… and that guy from Suna. Listen, Hinata... if they pair you off against that Suna ninja… withdraw immediately! And not just him! The same goes for Neji. If you have to face him, don't fight. Forfeit. He's so cruel to you… you'd be torn to pieces…" Kiba said.

"Well then… the next match will be… cough." Hayate said just before the next two names showed on the score-board and Hinata's eyes widened.

**Hyuga Hinata**

**Vs**

**Hyuga Neji**

_'Hinata…'_ Kurenai thought.

_'These contests get more and more intriguing…' _Hiruzen thought, and shortly after were Hinata and Neji standing in front of each other in the middle of the room.

"I never dreamed we'd find ourselves fighting each other… Hinata-sama." Neji said.

"… Neji… onii-san…" Hinata stuttered.

"Wait. She's his sister?" Kurotsuchi asked.

"… Both are members of Konoha's oldest and most illustrious family, through whose veins flows the most elite and accomplished blood… the Hyuga clan. But they're not brother and sister…" Kakashi explained.

"Then… how are they related?" Sakura asked.

"Well… it's complicated… I guess you could say they're related in the same way… that a tree branch is related to the trunk." Kakashi said.

"Branch and trunk…?" Naruto asked.

"Hai! Hinata is a member of the main branch of the Hyuga clan… and Neji is a member of the cadet branch that supports it." Lee explained.

"… So it's family fighting family? That'll be hard on both of them." Sakura said.

"Yes… except…" Lee said.

"Except…?" Kurotsuchi asked.

"There's been strain between the central and cadet branches of clan Hyuga for some time… relations aren't exactly friendly." Lee said.

"Why's that?" Akatsuchi asked.

"… I don't know all the details, but… it sounds like a pretty common tale among older families. The first generation of the Hyuga clan… made all sorts of rules and degrees that favored the main branch of the family… in order to preserve the family line and retain the purity of their blood. It's said that members of the cadet branch still burn with anger and humiliation." Lee explained.

"So it's one of those fateful showdown things, then…" Sakura said.

"Well… please begin the match! Cough." Hayate said.

"Before we begin… there's something I have to point out to Hinata-sama." Neji said, catching the blunette's attention "You're not cut out to be a shinobi. Withdraw from the match! You're all sweetness and light… a peacemaker, not a troublemaker. You're easily led, not a leader. And you have no self-confidence. You've got a world-class inferiority complex… so I know you'd have been more comfortable and content staying at the Genin level. But applicants for the Chunin exams must compete as a trio… and you couldn't bear to let your teammates down. The truth is, your participation has been reluctant from the start… hasn't it?"

"… N-no… you're wrong. I-I really… wanted to change that about myself. So, of my own volition, I…" Hinata said.

"Hinata-sama… you're the sheltered little baby of the main branch, aren't you?" Neji asked.

"What?" Hinata asked.

"A leopard doesn't change its spots. A failure always fails. And a weak personality won't become strong." Neji said.

_'That jerk…!'_ Naruto thought.

"It's precisely because of the unchanging nature of humankind that differences between people are born… it's why we've coined terms like "elite" and "failure". It doesn't matter who you are. We're all judged on the basis of our looks, our intelligence, our talent, or our personalities… just as we judge others in their turn. Yes, it's a form of discrimination. And the factors that it's based on don't change. We have no choice… we must live within the boundaries set for us by the judgments of others. It's as unchangeable as the fact that I'm of the cadet branch of the family… and you're a member of the main branch. I've seen through many things with this Byakugan… and so I know… this courage you're displaying is just a bluff! In the truest, deepest part of your heart, you're desperate to run away from here right now." Neji said.

"N-no… I really want to…" Hinata said.

"The Byakugan…?" Sakura asked as she looked at Kakashi.

"The "Byakugan" that he mentioned is one of the Kekkei Genkai passed down in the Hyuga family… a Dojutsu in some ways similar to the Sharingan… but in its penetrating perceptive ability… the Byakugan surpasses the Sharingan completely." Kitsuchi explained in Kakashi's stead.

Neji then activated his eyes and Hinata – in an attempt to escape Neji's stare – averted her eyes towards the upper left before glancing to the lower right as she held her hands in front of her.

"My eyes can't be deceived. Just now, to escape my stare… you averted your own eyes… glancing towards the upper left. It signaled your recall of a past experience… one that brought you pain. When you subsequently glanced to the lower right, it indicated that you were envisioning physical and mental agony. In other words… you recalled your own previous experiences, and based upon those memories… you imagined the outcome of this match. You foresaw… your own defeat! Even now, as you bring your arms up in front of your body as if to shield yourself… your body is signaling your desire to raise a wall between us…to create some distance from me. you implore me to come no further, to peer no more deeply into the innermost secrets of your heart… because everything I have said so far has been right on target! In addition… the way you're touching your lip… it's another of those tender, intimate behaviors that expresses the agitation in your heart. It's a defensive reflex… an attempt to ease your own anxieties and doubts… it's completely clear… whether you admit it or not, that you are aware… that you can never change yourself!" Neji said.

"Yes, she can!" Naruto yelled as he had had enough of what Neji was saying "You can't just arbitrarily decide these things about other people, you fool! Show him, Hinata! Beat up this baka!"

_'… Naruto-kun…'_ Hinata thought.

"Come on, Hinata. At least talk back to him! Just hearing him has made me mad, and it's you who has to fight him!" Naruto yelled.

_'Naruto-kun…'_ Hinata thought.

_'He's so annoying…!'_ Neji thought.

_'… thank you.'_ Hinata thought as she stared at Neji with new-found confidence.

_'The look in her eyes is different now…'_ Neji thought before saying "So you're not going to withdraw…? Then I won't be responsible for what happens here."

_'I… I don't want to run anymore! Byakugan.'_ Hinata thought as she activated her eyes before she assumed the Juken stance while saying "Neji-onii-san… let's fight."

_'That's…'_ Lee thought.

"Okay then…" Neji said as he assumed the same stance.

"They have the same Hyuga style, after all… even her stance is identical to Neji's." Lee said.

"… Hyuga style?" Sakura asked.

"… The strongest school of Taijutsu in Konoha! … I've mentioned it before, I'm sure… that "the strongest Genin is a member of my own team"! I was referring… to Hyuga Neji!" Lee said.

Hinata and Neji then charged at each other and Hinata went on the offensive, delivering several palm strikes, but Neji blocked all of them.

_'Here it is…!'_ Hinata thought when she saw an opening and she quickly delivered a palm strike to Neji's stomach.

"Did she get him?" Akatsuchi asked.

"No… it's just a scratch!" Kurotsuchi said.

"But… a scratch is all it would take. That's why the Hyuga clan is often regarded as Konoha's most illustrious family." Lee said.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Sakura asked.

"… Among the Hyuga, there are unique Taijutsu passed down from one generation to the next! Unlike the Taijutsu that Lee and I specialize in, which is all about beatings, bruises and broken bones, a style its proponents call Goken. The Hyuga clan employs Juken, to inflict damage to the enemy's Keirakukei, through which the chakra flows. That leads to the breakdown of the internal organs, destroying the foe from within. It doesn't look like much, but… the effect grows gradually after the initial attack." Guy explained.

"There's no way of strengthening the internal organs, so… any enemy struck with that blow is going to succumb!" Kitsuchi said.

_'Yes, even I can..._' Hinata thought as she directed a blow from Neji, away from her before delivering another palm strike to him.

_'… Hinata…'_ Kurenai thought.

"YEAH, HINATA!" Naruto cheered.

"What kind of people are they… to attack the Keirakukei? It doesn't seem possible! I mean, the Keirakukei is just energy lines inside the body… so how do you attack something you can't see?" Sakura asked.

"They can. Those two… their Byakugan can see them. And Juken attacks are different from the purely brute-force, physical kind. You take your own chakra and release it through the energy portals in your hands, forcing it into the body of your foe… where it can inflict massive damage on the enemy's Keirakukei." Kakashi said as Hinata delivered another palm strike to Neji's body.

"ALL RIGHT!" Naruto exclaimed.

Suddenly Hinata coughed up blood as Neji had hit her in the chest while he had the index and middle finger on his other hand stabbed at Hinata's arm.

"… So this is the full extent… of the main branch's strength?" Neji asked.

"Hey! What the heck? What about Hinata's attack?" Naruto yelled.

_'N-not yet…'_ Hinata thought before she attempted a palm strike to Neji's face, but the Hyuga prodigy grabbed Hinata's wrist with his left hand before hitting the index and middle finger on his right hand at Hinata's arm.

_'… What a fighter!'_ Kakashi thought.

_'D-don't tell me…'_ Kurenai thought.

_'My, my… It seems those who've called him the greatest genius in Hyuga clan history haven't overstated the case.'_ Hiruzen thought.

Neji then pushed Hinata's sleeve up her arm to reveal several black dots.

"… It can't be! You mean… from the very beginning…?" Hinata said.

"Precisely… my eyes can detect the Tenketsu!" Neji said before delivering a palm strike which sent Hinata skidding along the floor "Hinata-sama… this is the unalterable difference in strength… the distinction that separates the elite from the failure. This is the unchangeable reality. From the moment you said you wouldn't run, your defeat was inevitable. The only possible outcome was your present despair. … Withdraw!"

"… I… n-never… go back… on my word…" Hinata said as she got up on her feet.

_'Hinata…'_ Naruto thought.

"Because… that's… my nindo, too…!" Hinata said.

"Whoa! Hinata… man, she's got guts!" Naruto said.

"She's a lot like you…" Kurotsuchi said.

"Yeah… I've noticed that she's always watching you, Naruto…" Sakura said.

"Come here…" Neji said, but suddenly Hinata coughed up more blood.

_'That kid is really at her limit… one more attack and she'll…!'_ Kurenai thought.

"Neji's strikes on her Tenketsu have completely arrested her flow of chakra. She's lost the capacity to perform the Juken attacks that flood her chakra into her opponent's body. This fight is as good as done." Kakashi said.

_'It seems inevitable. Neji will win.'_ Guy thought.

"Those eyes… so creepy! Hinata… she won't get killed, will she…?" Ino asked.

"His level of strength… it… it's not a fair fight! He's just too strong…" Sakura said.

"Hang in there, Hinata!" Naruto yelled.

_'… Naruto-kun…!'_ Hinata thought before she looked at Neji.

_'The look of strength is back in her eyes…' _Neji thought as Hinata charged towards him.

_'I've been watching…'_ Hinata thought as she and Neji once again began to trade blows as she continued thinking _'I've watched you for years! Why is that…? I don't know what it is, but… when I watch Naruto-kun… I feel a wellspring of courage bubbling up inside of me. I feel like if I just do my best… then even I… am worth something! That's how I start to feel!'_

Hinata then moved in for a palm strike, but Neji brought his left hand down in a chopping-motion and diverted Hinata's attack before he hit her in the face and sent her skidding a few feet back.

"… Hinata…" Kurenai said before thinking _'… You always had a habit of quitting… but at some point, you started trying to change. You trained constantly… desperately… but on missions, you were always full of mistakes. You faltered. You were weak. And you never had faith in yourself. But that's no longer true… the Hinata I see now… has a look in her eyes… unlike anything I've ever seen!'_ Kurenai thought before Hinata again charged at Neji.

_'… Naruto-kun! … I've been watching you for such a long time… but now, at last… you're watching me!'_ She thought as she ran towards Neji, but Neji struck her before she could strike him and she collapsed down on the floor.

"Don't you know when to quit? From the start, your attacks have been completely ineffective!" Neji said.

_'Please, Hinata… call this off. You have lost the match, but you've succeeded in changing yourself! You did a great job!'_ Kurenai thought.

"That was Neji's master-stroke. It targets the heart. It's a pity, but the girl can no longer even stand…" Guy said.

"Seeing as the match cannot go on, I…" Hayate started, but Naruto cut him off.

"DON'T STOP IT!" He yelled.

"What are you talking about, you baka? She's got nothing left! She's already collapsed!" Sakura yelled, but suddenly, Hinata managed to climb up on her feet.

"… Why are you getting up? If you push too far, you really will die…" Neji said.

_'… It's because now the person I've admired for so long… is finally watching me, and… and in front of him… I can't bear to look uncool!'_ Hinata thought as she looked at Neji before she said "Th-this isn't over yet!"

"You're not fooling anyone. I can see with these eyes… it's taking all your strength just to stand! You were burdened from birth with the Hyuga clan's main branch… you've hated and punished yourself for your own weakness and frailty… but you can't fight your nature… or change your fate. But you need not suffer any more. Be at peace!" Neji said.

"But… you're wrong, Neji-onii-san… I can see it now… that even more than me… it's you who are torn and suffering… caught between the destinies of the main branch and cadet branch of our clan!" Hinata said before Neji suddenly charged at her.

"Neji… The match is already over!" Hayate yelled before he, Kakashi, Guy and Kurenai moved in to stop the Hyuga prodigy.

"Enough, Neji! Before this began, you swore you wouldn't drag the issues you have with your family's main branch into this." Guy said.

"Well… why is it that the other Jonin are getting involved? Special protection for the main branch, eh…?" Neji asked before Hinata collapsed while coughing up blood.

"HINATA!" Kurenai yelled as she ran over to her before Naruto, Lee and Sakura came down.

"Hinata! Hey, are you all right?" Naruto asked.

"She doesn't look good. Her face is so pale…!" Sakura said before Naruto glared at Neji.

"Hey… hey, you! Mr. Failure!" Neji said, catching the blond's attention "A couple of words of advice. A true shinobi would have too much class to make a spectacle of himself by cheering during a serious match. And one more thing… you may as well accept who you are. Once a failure, always a failure!"

"You wanna try me?" Naruto asked as he stood up on his feet before charging at Neji, but suddenly came Lee up in front of him.

"I understand almost painfully well what you're feeling, Naruto-kun! But… we have to limit our battles to the confines of the scheduled fights. The prospect of seeing a failure defeat a genius through sheer force of will… it really makes you look forward to the final rounds, eh…? Even though his opponent could very well be me! But even if it's you in the finals, Naruto-kun… I'll have no regrets!" He said.

"Yeah. I get it, okay?" Naruto said before Lee gave a thumbs-up to Guy who returned it.

_'Lee, you amazing kid! Nice!'_ Guy thought as some medics came and took Hinata away from there, Naruto crouched down and brought his fingers over Hinata's blood before standing up.

_'I give you my word…'_ He thought as he extended his right arm, holding his hand in a fist and said "I vow… to win!"

_'Naruto-kun…'_ Lee thought.

_'Naruto.'_ Sakura thought.

'_Naruto-kun.'_ Kurotsuchi thought.

"… That kid so doesn't know his place, it's funny… He has no idea how outranked he is." Kankuro said before thinking '_… Now we know there are two monsters here… but ours has an… inner nature that's uniquely bad.'_ He then noticed the look on Gaara's face '_This isn't good… Gaara's smelled blood… and now that thing is waking up… starting to fidget… the demon that lives within him. But that Neji guy… You'd think he hadn't even been harmed… that he still has hidden reserves of strength… We've got to start planning ahead… to prepare for the final rounds… Maybe I should gather some intelligence… I guess Naruto's a good place to start.'_

"Hey…" A voice said when Naruto had reached the top of the stairs and he turned around to see Kankuro "You're a funny guy… I like that."

"Well you're not funny at all… and I don't like that!" Naruto said.

_'That miserable little… you are so dead the first time I get an excuse!'_ Kankuro thought.

"What the hack do you want?! Naruto asked.

"Well… you see… it's about that Hyuga Neji guy… but…" Kankuro said.

"I'm gonna get that guy!" Naruto said.

"… Fine, fine, but that's not what I asked." Kankuro said.

"Now, then… cough, cough… it's time for the next bout!" Hayate said before the next two names came up.

**Takimaru**

**Vs**

**Dosu Kinuta**

"Man, I'm up against him?" Takimaru said before walking down.

"Don't worry, Takimaru-kun. I'm sure you'll win!" Fu called after her teammate.

"Yeah, yeah." Takimaru said.

"Heh. I wouldn't be too sure about that." Dosu said as he passed the Taki-nins.

Soon, the two were facing each other in the middle of the room and Hayate said "Begin."

'_Man, I can't believe they put me up against that Oto-nin. Oh, well. I've already constructed a plan to beat him.'_ Takimaru thought. **(Kurama no Kyubi: Not knowing who he'd be up against, he came up with plans of how to beat everyone he knew the abilities of.)**

"I suggest you just surrender to save yourself the embarrassment of losing." Dosu said.

"Sorry, but I never step back from a fight." Takimaru said as his eyes suddenly started glowing red and a mist covered the entire bottom half of the room.

'_A mist? Too bad for him that a mist consists of water particles… and sound travel through water!'_ Dosu thought before simply punching the air and he heard someone scream before he thought '_Too easy.'_ He then headed towards where the scream had come from, and he as he approached the place, he saw a silhouette in the mist. When Dosu reached the silhouette however, it vanished into thin air '_Nani?'_

Just then Takimaru appeared behind him, holding a kunai to his throat as the mist vanished and the Akagan bearer's eyes turned back to normal.

"Sorry, but the mist I create isn't made out of water as you may have thought. It's just a strong Genjutsu that only members of my clan can use." Takimaru said.

"So, you created that mist and hoped that I would take the bait?" Dosu asked.

"Precisely." Takimaru said before putting his right hand on Dosu's back "Now, let's give you a taste of your own medicine." Suddenly Dosu's eyes widened as he felt as though his own technique had been used on him before he fell unconscious. **(Kurama no Kyubi: For all we know, there could be many abilities of the Akagan that we've never seen before, so I figured that one ability it could have was to absorb an enemy's attack before sending it right back at said enemy, or any of the enemy's allies at twice the power. It doesn't work well against stronger opponents though.)**

"Winner is Takimaru!" Hayate said.

"Way to go, Takimaru-san!" Shibuki yelled as Takimaru walked back towards the stairs.

'_What a strong Genjutsu. It's hard to believe that he's still a Genin.'_ Kakashi thought.

"Alright. Cough. Let's start the next bout." Hayate said.

"I guess it's finally your turn! Go, Lee!" Guy said.

"No way!" Lee said, surprising Guy, Neji, Kakashi, Sakura, Kitsuchi, Kurotsuchi and Akatsuchi "I've waited this long… if it were up to me… I'd rather be the final act!"

_'… It almost looks like Lee-san is… sulking!'_ Sakura thought.

"Hey, Choji, you're in trouble now… only the strongest are left… what'll you do? Especially that kid from Suna… the look in his eyes worries me. He's the most dangerous type!" Shikamaru said.

"I'll just withdraw right away… so it won't matter!" Choji said.

"Well, you'll be giving up your chance for an all-you-can-eat victory barbecue once the exam is over…" Asuma said.

"Hey, don't bait him with food…!" Shikamaru said.

"B-but…" Choji stuttered.

"Don't worry. If things go bad, I'll jump in and stop the fight. Okay?" Asuma reassured.

"You hear that, Choji? You can go for it. Asuma-sensei will be looking out for you!" Ino said.

'… _Will he? When Hinata got into trouble, he was the only teacher from Konoha who didn't jump in to stop it. I hope Choji will be all right…'_ Shikamaru thought.

"Let's go! Think of the barbeque! Oh yeah! All the meat I can eat!" Choji yelled.

'… _Unless you get eaten first, you poor sap.'_ Shikamaru thought.

Gaara suddenly shunshined down before saying "Don't keep me waiting."

"I'M SAFE!" Choji yelled as the next two names had appeared on the score-board.

**Gaara**

**Vs**

**Rock Lee**

_'So it's Lee-san… but… that huge gourd of Gaara's… what's it for? I have a bad feeling about this…_' Sakura thought.

"Okay! You caught me! As soon as I said I wanted to be last… I was thwarted! It's a natural law… you can throw a stone at a telephone pole time and again and never hit it… but the minute you aim to miss, you end up hitting the thing dead center. I didn't really want to be the final act anyway!" Lee yelled.

_'Then… who's the one who got caught?'_ Kurotsuchi thought.

"Lee! I've noticed something crucial that most people may have over-looked." Guy said.

"Yes, sir!" Lee said.

"That gourd thing of his is quite suspicious…" Guy said.

"I see…" Lee said as he started writing on a piece of paper.

"Stop taking notes! You won't have time to consult them in the heat of battle!" Guy said.

"… I see…" Lee said as he put away the piece of paper.

_'I hope Lee-san will be all right…'_ Sakura thought.

'_He's done for…'_ Kurotsuchi thought.

"All right! Go get him, Lee!" Guy yelled.

"Yes, sir!" Lee yelled as he jumped down and landed in front of Gaara "Facing you so soon… makes me very happy!"

"I don't know what kind of tricks this bowl-cut kid has up his sleeve… but there's no way he'll win against Gaara." Kankuro said.

"No… he's stronger than you think…" Naruto said.

The cork on Gaara's gourd suddenly shot out and headed straight for Lee, but said Taijutsu user simply caught it before saying "Please… don't rush things."

_'Watch yourself… Lee.'_ Guy thought.

"All right, then. Let the twelth-round battle begin!" Hayate announced before Lee charged at Gaara.

"Konoha Senpou." Lee called out as he moved in for a roundhouse kick, but he hit a shield of sand _'… Sand…?'_ Suddenly the sand crashed into Lee and sent him rolling along the floor.

_'… Sand? He's manipulating sand?'_ Sakura thought.

_'What a curious technique…'_ Kakashi thought.

_'The gourd is full of sand?'_ Naruto thought.

'_So that's the ability of the Ichibi Jinchuriki, huh?'_ Fu thought.

_'Darn!'_ Lee thought as he skidded to a halt before charging at Gaara again. He then attempted a punch, but the sand shield stopped it, then he tried a kick, but it was stopped too _'Without even moving a muscle… darn!'_

"Fast as he is, Lee-san is getting nowhere!" Sakura said.

"His attacks just aren't working!" Naruto said.

"Physical attacks are worthless against Gaara. The sand forms a shield to protect his body… independent of Gaara's will. That's why, to this day, there's not one person… who has ever wounded him." Kankuro said and Naruto gulped as Lee tried to punch Gaara again, but was stopped by the shield of sand again.

"Why is Lee-san only using Taijutsu? Taijutsu are ineffective and painful against that wall of sand. He needs to use Ninjutsu and start attacking from a distance!" Sakura said.

"It's not that Lee won't use Ninjutsu… It's that he can't." Guy said.

_'… What?'_ Sakura thought in surprise.

"… Lee has practically no Ninjutsu or Genjutsu abilities…" Guy said.

"A-are you joking? Then how has he lasted this long?" Sakura yelled.

"When I first met Lee, he had absolutely no sense… and no talent or ability whatsoever! That's why the only moves he's been able to develop are Taijutsu. There aren't many ninja who can use neither Ninjutsu nor Genjutsu…" Guy said.

"Hmm… Yeah. He the first I've ever heard of." Kitsuchi said.

Gaara's sand suddenly started shooting up from the floor to try and grab Lee, but the Taijutsu user jumped backwards before jumping up and landing on the tip of the finger of the right hand of the giant statue that was just on the other side of the wall.

"… And that's precisely why Lee can win!" Guy said before giving Lee a thumbs-up and yelling "Lee! Take them off!"

"B-but Guy-sensei! You said... never to do that unless I was defending the lives of people who are precious to me!" Lee yelled.

"It's all right! I'll allow it!" Guy yelled and Lee then removed some weights that were wrapped around his legs.

"… Weights?" Kurotsuchi asked.

_'Oh, Guy… the most sickeningly sweet, sentimentally traditional kind of training!'_ Kakashi thought.

"Right! Now I can move freely!" Lee yelled as he dropped the weights.

_'How dumb!'_ Kankuro thought.

"I see!" Naruto said.

_'Hm… there's no way dropping a few weights… will let you keep up with Gaara's sand…'_ Temari thought and her along with nearly anyone else's eyes widened when the weights crashed into the floor with a bang and huge dust clouds came up.

_'Aren't you over-doing it, Guy?'_ Kakashi thought.

"GO! LEE!" Guy yelled.

"YES, SIR!" Lee yelled before he suddenly vanished and reappeared behind Gaara before attempting a punch, but this time Gaara's sand was just in time to block it.

_'Almost!'_ Sakura thought.

_'He's fast…'_ Kakashi thought.

Lee then tried to kick Gaara and it almost went through, he then attempted a punch before another punch, each attack was faster than the last.

"It's because he had no aptitude for either Ninjutsu or Genjutsu… that Lee devoted himself so exclusively to Taijutsu. All his time… all his energy… all his focus. So that even if he lacked any other kind of abilities at all… he'd still be unbeatable…" Guy said as Lee came up behind Gaara "… as a Taijutsu specialist!"

Lee then jumped into the air above Gaara before giving a heel kick to the Ichibi Jinchuriki's head, surprising most of the audience.

"In terms of speed, Lee can't be surpassed… I thought I gave you all fair warning… that this boy… is really strong!" Guy said.

"Well… here we go!" Lee said as he skidded backwards.

_'It's unbelievable. He actually managed… to wound Gaara!' _Temari thought.

"Bushy-brows has gotten even faster!" Naruto said before thinking _'He really is strong…'_

"… No way…" Kankuro said in disbelief.

"LEE! NOW… EXPLODE!" Guy yelled.

"YES, SIR!" Lee yelled before he vanished and reappeared behind Gaara, but as Gaara looked over his shoulder, Lee vanished again and this time reappeared in front of the Suna-nin "Over here…" He then punched Gaara away.

"W-wow! He's so fast! The sand barrier couldn't keep up with him. It was no protection at all!" Sakura exclaimed.

_'I'm wearing him down!'_ Lee thought.

"W-wow… his moves are so fast, my eyes can't even track them!" Choji said.

"… This is bad…" Kankuro said.

"You got that right! That raccoon-eyed jerk! After the way he just got hit, he shouldn't even still be standing!" Naruto said.

"… That's not the problem…" Kankuro said.

'_The Ichibi. I can sense the Ichibi's presence… starting to come to the surface.'_ Fu thought.

As Gaara stood up on his feet again, everyone could see that of his skin seemed to start falling off.

"… What…?" Lee said surprised as he saw that it wasn't the skin that was falling off, but an armor of sand, and Gaara seemed to have gotten an insane look in his eyes.

_'He mummified himself in sand…! The blows barely touched him.' _Kakashi thought.

_'Wh-what is he…?'_ Sakura wondered as she gulped.

"An armor of sand? When did he encase himself in that?" Naruto asked.

_'He was wearing the sand like a shell, eh…? Hmm… It's been quite some time since I saw that expression on his face… he's usually as composed as a statue, the picture of politeness and decorum. I had sensed that, during the Chunin examination, he was becoming more and more unstable… but… the other Gaara… is now totally awake…!' _Kankuro thought before saying "If this Gaara is able to catch Lee… Lee will be toyed with and then killed!"

Suddenly the sand started covering Gaara's body to repair the sand armor that Lee had destroyed.

_'If Gaara has been driven to using the armor… then right now, his mind is purely on defense. He's been driven into a corner…! That Lee is really something! But the end of this is a foregone conclusion… because Gaara… is a genius!'_ Kankuro thought.

"Is that all…?" Gaara asked.

_'It's an amazing defense! He's encased in protection, which makes my speed irrelevant… my only shot is to just keep pounding and punishing that outer layer of sand!'_ Lee thought.

_'What's he up to now?'_ Temari thought.

_'Lee-san…'_ Sakura thought.

_'… The Renge!'_ Lee thought before he looked up towards Guy who then gave an affirmative nod and Lee started unwrapping the bandages around his arms.

_'The Renge will let him strike his foe at high speed… a thin layer of sand won't stand up to it.' _Guy thought before Lee suddenly started running around Gaara faster than the eye could see _'And if it happens that he's wearing a thick shell of sand, it will be almost impossible for him to kick outward… in which case…!'_

"Come on… hurry up!" Gaara said as he started getting impatient.

"As you wish!" Lee said before he kicked Gaara into the air, but thanks to the sand armor, he was barely lifted off the ground "And that's not all!"

Lee then, started delivering a fury of kicks to Gaara that sent the Suna-nin ever higher up as his sand tried to reach them. Then Lee got up behind Gaara, but before he could do anything else, he felt a slight sting of pain and closed his eyes, and this didn't go unnoticed by Gaara.

_'… Even an ordinary Renge move exerts a great strain on the user's body… that many consecutive kicks may be too much even for Lee… better make your next move a decisive one, kid!_' Guy thought as he had clasped his hands together and closed his eyes shut to pray.

"Gotcha!" Lee said as the bandages had finished wrapping themselves around Gaara before the started spiraling down to the floor "Omote Renge."

They hit the floor and Lee jumped away, so that he wouldn't get killed as well by the impact.

"… D-do you think he's dead…?" Naruto asked.

"Uh… you're kidding, right…?" Kankuro said.

"Lee-san… he… he won!" Sakura exclaimed.

"Yosh!" Guy said.

When Lee landed however, he saw that Gaara's sand armor fell off to reveal… that it was empty.

"… When did he slip out of that shell? There's no way he could have gotten past Lee!" Guy yelled.

"It happened when your eyes were closed in prayer, Guy. Lee paused in pain for just a moment… and that's when…" Kakashi said as Gaara came up behind Lee, laughing an insane laughter.

'_There's something not quite right about that Gaara… Hmm… I wonder. Rinnegan!'_ Naruto thought as he activated his all-powerful eyes which then widened as he saw a yellow chakra that seemed to be leaking out of Gaara's body '_What in the world?'_ **(Kurama no Kyubi: I don't really like that thing with all of the Biju having the same color for their chakra, so in each of my stories they'll have a different color from each other.)**

_'It's finally awakened…! Gaara's inner demon!'_ Kankuro thought as Gaara made a hand sign and a wave of sand shot towards Lee and threw him into the wall before shooting towards him again and crashing into the wall.

_'Mister Bowl-cut is at the end of his rope. Gaara's just toying with him…' _Kankuro thought as the dust cloud that came from the sand's impact with the wall faded, revealing Lee who was holding his arms out, in front of him to protect himself.

"Why doesn't Lee just duck?" Sakura asked.

"… The Renge technique he just used… it's a double-edged sword." Guy said.

"Fundamentally, it's a forbidden move. Using that level of high-speed Taijutsu puts a huge strain on the body. Right now, that kid's nothing but a mass of pain and weakness." Kitsuchi said.

"B-but… that means…" Sakura said as Gaara's sand slammed into Lee, sending him skidding away "… at this rate, Lee-san's gonna…"

_'…Lee…'_ Guy thought as he recalled the first time he saw Lee.

Flashback

Lee, as well as the other kids in his class at the academy were currently running rounds outside the academy.

"Ha ha ha ha… you baka! There's no way you'll ever be a ninja!" One of the kids said.

"Yeah. How could someone who can't even use Ninjutsu hope to become a ninja?" Another one said.

"But… I will!" Lee retorted.

"You're not capable of anything but Taijutsu… and you're even mediocre at that! What were they thinking, letting you into the ninja academy?" Another kid said as Lee tried to ignore him "Heh… want to know what the other kids call you?"

"No!" Lee said as he put his hands over his ears before he ran off and the other kids started laughing.

"Lee! Get in line!" The teacher yelled after him as Guy looked down on the scene from a window.

"Heh heh… So that's the gaki they're all gossiping about… The little hot-head who couldn't!" He said.

Flashback end

Lee was then hit by another wave of sand, courtesy of Gaara.

_'But Lee… you took your mediocre skills in Taijutsu… and made exercise and practice your obsession, and then…'_ Guy thought as he recalled when Lee, Neji and Tenten first became Genin.

Flashback

"Now that you've officially become Genin… I want to hear all about your goals!" Guy said as he was standing in front of the three Genin.

"I don't want to say." Neji said.

"Well then…" Guy said.

"I want to become a strong kunoichi, like my idol, the legendary Tsunade-sama!" Tenten said.

"SENSEI!" Lee yelled as he raised his hand "I want to prove that even a person who can't use Ninjutsu or Genjutsu… can still become a splendid ninja! It's my only goal!"

_'He's got good eyes…'_ Guy thought before Neji chuckled and Lee stood up while pointing an accusing finger at the Hyuga.

"HEY! What's so funny?" he yelled.

Flashback end

Another wave of sand came at Lee and he attempted to get out of the way as he recalled the end-result of one of his battles against Neji.

Flashback

Lee hit the ground as he had lost yet another battle against the Hyuga prodigy.

"Oh, Lee-san! Don't you know when to quit? You don't stand a chance here… not against Neji. He's a genius… and you're not.' Tenten said.

"Give up, Lee. No matter how hard you try, you can't hope to beat me. that's just the way it is." Neji said.

Flashback end

Guy then recalled one time he had seen the kid training.

Flashback

Lee was currently at one of the training fields, doing push-ups as Guy spied on him.

_'Okay… if 500 consecutive push-ups don't make me strong enough, then I'll do 1.200 double-skips with the jump-rope…'_ Lee thought and sure enough, just a little while later he was doing double-skips with the jump rope as he thought _'And if 1.200 double-skips don't do it, then I'll kick the wooden practice dummy 2.000 times!'_

_'… 1.116… 1.117… whoa!'_ Guy thought, but Lee suddenly tripped in the rope and fell head-first into the wooden practice dummy and as he hit the ground, he started crying.

"So, Lee… taking a break already?" Guy asked as he stepped out from behind the tree that he'd been hiding behind and Lee got up on his feet.

"Did you… need something, Guy-sensei? If it's about the blunder I made during our last mission, I thought I'd already made it up to you!" Lee said before he started kicking the wooden dummy.

"You know… you really are very different from Neji… you're no genius at Ninjutsu or Genjutsu… and you really aren't a Taijutsu virtuoso, either. Nevertheless, Lee… there's one area where you completely surpass Neji. You're a genius of another kind with great hidden potential." Guy said.

"You're just saying that to be nice!" Lee said as he continued kicking.

"I'm not trying to be nice. I'm just saying… that you are…" Guy said as Lee stopped kicking "… a genius of hard work."

"… Do you really… mean that? I-I've only been able to make it this far… by having faith that, if I trained two or three times as hard as Neji, I might finally beat him. I've always believed that. But… lately, I've started to feel that I had no hope… of ever measuring up to a true genius like Neji. I've wondered if it was possible for hard work alone to be rewarded… so I've kept challenging Neji… but the results have always been the same… I'm no match for him! And even now, on missions, my legs still tremble in fear… fear that no matter how hard I work, I'll never get stronger. It scares me so much I can't stand it. … I don't know what to do…" Lee said.

"All your hard work will prove worthless unless you believe in yourself!" Guy said.

Flashback end

_'Thank you… Guy-sensei…'_Lee thought as he had also recalled it before he recalled another conversation he had had with his sensei.

Flashback

"You remind me of me… way back when I was a complete failure. Nowadays, in matches against that elite genius, Kakashi, we're nearly even! "I want to prove that even a person who can't use Ninjutsu or Genjutsu can still become a splendid ninja!" That's your shinobi path, isn't it? It's a great goal… one that's really worth fighting for. It's the path you chose, so have faith and follow it! Become such a strong fighter that I can just sit back and enjoy the show! You got that, Lee?" Guy said as he patted the boy on the head.

"YES, SIR!" Lee exclaimed.

Flashback end

Guy looked down on the battle as another wave of sand came towards Lee.

"… Lee-san, no! Give up before he kills you!" Sakura yelled, but to almost everyone's surprise, Lee dodged it.

_'He got his speed back!'_ Naruto thought.

_'Guy-sensei is sitting back and enjoying the show… just knowing that is enough to revive me…! … And to make me… stronger than ever!'_ Lee thought as he assumed his Taijutsu stance while smiling.

"Lee-san's being pushed around so brutally… why is he smiling?" Sakura asked.

"He's about to start pushing back!" Guy said, catching the pinkette's attention "The lotus of Konoha… will bloom twice!"

"… For you, it ends here." Gaara said.

"Well, one way or another… the next move will be the last." Lee said.

_'The lotus of Konoha will bloom twice?'_ Kakashi thought as his visible eye widened before he said "Guy… don't tell me you…!"

"On the contrary. I did." Guy said.

"Then… that kid, who's just a Genin… is able to open the Hachimon…?" Kakashi asked.

"Yes… that's right." Guy said.

_'It's awful…'_ Kakashi thought.

"He has the talent…" Guy said.

"No matter how much talent he has, you taught him something horribly dangerous! The Ura Renge tops the list… of moves you shouldn't teach!" Kakashi yelled.

_'… Ura Renge…?'_ Neji thought.

"It's none of my business what that child means to you… and I'll spare us both the lecture about not being governed by your feelings… but you crossed a line on this! … You disappoint me, Guy!" Kakashi said.

"You… don't know the first thing about that kid…" Guy said as he remembered what Lee had said when he first became a Genin.

"I want to prove that even a person who can't use Ninjutsu or Genjutsu… can still become a splendid ninja! It's my only goal!"

"That boy has something he values so deeply that he's willing to die for the sake of it. That's why I… wanted to help him become someone who'd be able to stand up for his ideals. I had to." Guy said as Lee started to hold his arms in an X-shape in front of his face.

_'So he was able to back from exhaustion with such abnormal speed because he'd forced open the Kyumon.'_ Kakashi thought before saying "So tell me, Guy… which of the Hachimon has he gotten up to so far?"

"The Tomon." Guy said and both Kakashi's and Kitsuchi's eyes widened.

_'That feat should be impossible to achieve through hard work alone… so… the boy's a genius after all.'_ Kakashi thought.

'_Konoha has someone that young who can open the Tomon?'_ Kitsuchi thought.

"What are you talking about? You keep mentioning these… Hachimon?" Kurotsuchi asked.

"The Hachimon act as limiters that must be released in preparation for performing the Ura Renge." Guy explained.

"Limiters… released?" Sakura asked as Kakashi lifted his Hitai-ate to reveal his Sharingan.

"Yes…" He said

"At eight specific points along the Keirakukei there are places where the chakra nodes converge: The Kaimon, the Kyumon, the Seimon, the Shomon, the Tomon, the Keimon, the Kyomon and the Shimon. Those are called the Hachimon… they constantly maintain limits on the amount of chakra flowing through the body… limits that the Renge uses chakra to forcibly override… enabling the user to draw upon strength that is dozens of times his usual level… even if the user's body is destroyed in the process. Incidentally, the Omote Renge opens only the Kaimon." Guy explained.

"And… the Ura Renge?" Akatsuchi asked.

"Opening the Kaimon frees the user from his own mental inhibitions. The opening of the Kyumon boosts his strength… and with the opening of the Seimon, one can begin the Ura Renge…" Guy said.

"But… the Omote Renge alone got him so beat up… if he tries to perform anymore moves…" Sakura said.

"That's right… this technique is a double-edged sword. The state where all the Hachimon have been opened is called the "Hachimon Tonko no Jin"… and anyone who achieves that state will – however briefly – be granted strength that surpasses even a Kage's. But in exchange… that person will inevitably die!" Kitsuchi said.

_'… Neji… Sasuke… and even…'_ Lee thought as he thought of the three people that he wanted to fight the most, Neji, Sasuke and Naruto _'I will not be… the only one who fails! Guy-sensei… please… notice me… now, of all times… now, when I finally attain… my shinobi path!' _Suddenly, his skin turned red as small rocks started floating around him and his hair stood up "Seimon… KAI!"

_'Hey. The color of his skin changed!'_ Kurotsuchi thought.

_'He opened the Seimon… he's going to make his move!'_ Kakashi thought.

_'And, while I'm at it… Shomon… KAI!'_ Lee thought as all of his muscles tensed and a small trail of blood came out of his nose.

_'He's quite something…'_ Kakashi thought just before Lee vanished, and before anyone knew it, he kicked Gaara up into the air _'He's fast!'_

"Gaara?" Kankuro yelled as he couldn't see his younger brother anywhere.

"You're looking in the wrong place!" Naruto said as he looked up and Kankuro followed his stare and his eyes widened.

"Look up!" Shikamaru yelled.

"But what about Lee? I don't see him anywhere!" Choji said.

_'It looks like the sand… just can't keep up!'_ Kurotsuchi thought.

Lee suddenly appeared in front of Gaara and punched him, making the Suna-nin fly towards the wall, but then the Konoha-nin appeared behind him and punched him again. It went on like that for several minutes as both ninja went through unbelievable pain.

_'What? My sand armor is… peeling off?'_ Gaara thought as he noted that his sand encasing started falling off.

_'The sand armor again, eh? At this rate…'_ Lee thought as he prepared for another punch.

_'His muscles have torn… if this goes any further…'_ Kakashi thought.

_'But… it's only Lee! How did he get so…?'_ Neji thought as he had activated the Byakugan.

"This is the end! Tomon… KAI!" Lee yelled.

_'My defenses are failing… is he even human…?'_ Gaara thought.

_'Hey, Neji! This is a move I was keeping in reserve to use against you, but… I'll give you a sneak preview!'_ Lee thought before he punched Gaara in the stomach, sending him towards the floor. But Lee had managed to wrap some of the bandages on his left arm around Gaara's waist, stopping the Jinchuriki from hitting the floor.

_'The sand shield can't keep up… much of the sand armor has been torn away… this is not good…!'_ Temari thought.

_'The Ura Renge… a series of Taijutsu performed with such speed that the attacker is untouchable! These rapid moves are Lee's key to winning the match… there's no way the sand can catch up…!'_ Guy thought.

_'This is the finale!'_ Lee thought before he pulled the bandages and Gaara was pulled towards him. Lee then thrusted his right hand and right foot into Gaara's stomach while yelling "Ura Renge!" And the Suna-nin shot towards the floor and impacted with it with such force that a tremendous shockwave almost blew everyone off their feet.

_'It's so fast, you can't even see…'_ Shikamaru thought as Kakashi, Guy and Kitsuchi noticed that the gourd on Gaara's back turned into sand just before the impact.

_'Don't tell me…'_ Guy thought.

_'The gourd is turning to sand…!'_ Kakashi thought.

'_The gourd was made of sand?'_ Kitsuchi thought.

As Lee started to climb up on his feet, he saw that Gaara was lying on a pillow of sand with his right arm extended towards him.

_'The gourd… was made of sand… he used it to protect himself!'_ Guy thought as sand suddenly started going up Lee's left arm and left leg.

"Sabaku Kyu!" Gaara said as he clenched his fist and the sand on Lee's limbs imploded, crushing the Konoha-nin's bones before said Konoha-nin fell to the floor and another wave of sand rushed at him, but to Gaara's shock, Guy suddenly appeared and the sand dispersed.

Suddenly Gaara felt an intense pain on the right side of his forehead and he brought his hand up there before asking "Why are you… helping him?"

Guy then thought of several things that Lee have said.

"Heh heh… I'm all right… 'cause I'm so strong!"

"Guy-sensei, I'll excel in the Chunin exams… you can sit back and enjoy the show!"

"I want to prove that even a person who can't use Ninjutsu or Genjutsu… can still become a splendid ninja! It's my only goal!"

_'He's…'_ Guy thought before saying "He's my lovable, precious protégé!"

_'… Those words are beyond the scope of Gaara's understanding…'_ Baki thought before Gaara turned and walked away as the sand flowed up to his back to reform the gourd.

"Forget it…" He said.

"The victor is Gaara!" Hayate said before – to everyone's surprise – Lee stood back up on his feet whit his hair shadowing the eyes as he got into his Taijutsu stance.

_'I can't believe it…'_ Guy thought.

_'He opened the Tomon… his arms and legs were crushed… how can he still stand?'_ Kakashi thought as Guy walked over to the kid and put his hands on Lee's shoulders.

"Lee, it's all right… it's over. You're in no shape to be standing…" Guy said before noticing Lee's eyes and as he started crying, he thought _'… Lee… you… you incredible kid…'_ Lee's eyes were completely pale, meaning that he was unconscious _'Even though you've been knocked senseless, you're still… trying to stay true to your Nindo… Lee… you are already… a splendid ninja…!'_

_'Lee-san…!'_ Sakura thought as she climbed up on the fence, preparing to jump down.

"Sakura!" Kakashi said, catching the pinkette's attention "How do you intend to help him? Your presence will only cause him pain…"

"Hm! He never had a chance against Gaara…" Temari said before Naruto jumped down and started to run towards Lee, who Guy had laid down on the floor.

_'How could Bushy-Brows lose to such a jerk?'_ The blond Rinnegan bearer thought as he ran past Gaara.

_'Naruto…'_ Kakashi thought.

"Emergency unit, please hurry!" Hayate yelled as the medic-nins came.

"E-excuse us!" One of the medics said before he noticed something and walked over to Guy "Are you the Jonin responsible for him? If I may have a word…"

"… Though he's breathing on his own, he has compound compressive fractures and torn muscles throughout his body. If that were the full extent of his injuries, we could still expect a full recovery, but… the damage to his attacked left arm and leg is especially severe. I don't want to say this, but…" The medic whispered so that only Guy would hear it "This kid's body is so destroyed… he'll never recover enough to be a shinobi again." At this, Guy's eyes widened.

_'… Lee… I never let myself think that you could lose… I wanted to help you achieve your Nindo… please forgive me, Lee… for not stopping you… before it was too late.'_ Guy thought.

_'Lee… even at the bitter end, you didn't realize… the heavens would never allow you to advance further… if your triumph were a pyrrhic victory.'_ Neji thought.

Gaara then shunshined up to where Baki and Temari were standing and the blond girl said "Welcome back, Gaara…"

"Guy…" Kakashi said as he looked down towards his rival before thinking _'… I was pretty cocky earlier, but… to be honest… if I'd been in your position… I probably wouldn't have been able to stop Lee either.'_

**Akimichi Choji**

**Vs**

**Akatsuchi**

"Well… it's the finale… the 13th-round battle. Both contestants, please step forward!" Hayate said as Naruto and Guy walked back up to the others and shortly afterwards were the two remaining competitors facing each other in the middle of the room.

"Uh… well… let the 13th-round battle begin!" Hayate said.

"Go get him!" Shikamaru yelled.

"You can do it, fatso!" Ino cheered.

"Ugh…! Shut your mouth and keep your eyes open! I'm gonna end this match fast so I can come beat you up!" Choji yelled.

"Good luck, Akatsuchi! We're rooting for you!" Kurotsuchi yelled.

"Uh… Thanks." Akatsuchi said before looking at Choji.

"Baika no Jutsu! Nikudan Sensha!" Choji said as he became bigger before his arms, legs and head went into his body and he started rolling towards Akatsuchi who weaved a series of hand signs.

"Doton: Doryuheki no Jutsu!" Akatsuchi said as he slammed his arms down on the ground and a wall of earth came up. Choji then impacted with said wall, and when Akatsuchi noticed that cracks were beginning to form, he quickly jumped out of the way before Choji burst through the wall.

Choji then managed to turn just before he would crash into the wall and he rolled towards Akatsuchi who slammed his arms together.

"Doton: Goremu!" Suddenly came a stone golem out of Akatsuchi's mouth and it punched Choji so hard that – even though he was rolling at high-speed – he was sent flying into the wall and knocked unconscious.

"The winner is Akatsuchi!" Hayate announced.

"Way to go, Akatsuchi!" Kurotsuchi yelled.

"Hey, are you all right?" A medic-nin that was crouched next to Choji asked.

"I… I want… to eat meat…" Choji said.

"Well… he lost, but I guess I'll still take him out for barbecue." Asuma said.

_'Phew… cough, cough… It's finally over…'_ Hayate thought.

_'At last… the finals…_' Hiruzen thought.

"Uh… Well then, as of this moment, the preliminaries to the third exam… are now complete!" Hayate announced and shortly after were all of the Genin that had advanced – except for Sasuke – standing in front of Hiruzen and the exam proctors.

"To those of you who won your bouts and qualified for the finals of the third phase of the Chunin exams – although one of you isn't here, cough – congratulations!" Hayate said.

_'Including the absent Uchiha Sasuke, there are… five Konoha… three Suna ninja… two Iwa… and three Taki… hmm.'_ Hiruzen thought before saying "Well then… starting now… I shall be explaining the finals…"

_'Okay! Finally!_' Naruto thought.

Konoha

Somewhere in the village were Orochimaru leaning at a column and Kabuto was kneeling in front of him.

"The preliminaries have safely concluded… they will now proceed to the finals." Kabuto said.

"How tranquil… or rather… how naively peaceful this nation has become… while all the other countries are busy with military expansion races…" Orochimaru said.

"So if we strike now…?" Kabuto asked as he stood up on his feet.

"Well, yes… although I doubt it would be any fun to kill that feeble old geezer…" Orochimaru said.

"… Are you so sure of yourself…? To me… it still seems like you're faltering. Soon, the powers of each hidden village will collide and enter a fierce, lengthy conflict… Otogakure will be one of those involved… and you're planning to be the trigger of that… and to that end, that boy… he's a bullet, right? Uchiha Sasuke-kun, was it…?" Kabuto said.

"Heh… your insights are disgustingly accurate…" Orochimaru said.

"Well, obviously not… because I didn't know about Dosu, Zaku and Kin. When I was assigned to gather intelligence on Sasuke-kun… I wanted to understand the power of those three Oto ninja. I made a foolish tactical error… I even provoked them into attacking me… and overestimated my own defenses. It seems… you still don't put your full trust in me… isn't that right?" Kabuto said.

"Those three are so inconsequential… is it really necessary for me to tell of such trivialities? You're my right- hand man… that itself is evidence of my trust. That's why… I was thinking of entrusting Sasuke-kun to you… the curse mark I put on him… it seems it's been sealed by that pesky Kakashi… not that it's of much consequence. But before the darkness in his soul is extinguished… I want you to kidnap him right away." Orochimaru said.

"How unlike you… you're worried!" Kabuto said.

"There is something causing a bit of concern…" Orochimaru said.

"You mean… the one with the Rinnegan, Uzumaki Naruto-kun?" Kabuto asked. **(Kurama no Kyubi: Of course he told Kabuto.)**

_'Heh… a sharp child, indeed…'_ Orochimaru thought before saying "Sasuke-kun is an embodiment of vengeance… his sole reason for living is the desire to kill his older brother. Until he achieves that goal, he cannot die. And yet… when we fought each other… even though he knew he couldn't prevail against me… he came at me without any fear of death. And I hadn't thought he was a child who would rush so eagerly to his demise… according to your notes, it seems that his contact with Naruto-kun… is changing Sasuke-kun's purpose and his soul. Since Naruto-kun possesses so much influence over Sasuke-kun… I must separate them immediately… as soon as I can, I've got to stain him with my colors…" Orochimaru said.

"Well then…" Kabuto said as he turned around and started walking.

"Kabuto-kun… you…" Orochimaru said, catching the Oto spy's attention "If you want to stop me… your only chance is to kill Sasuke-kun now. There's no way you could kill me, eh? Even if you're strong… you're no stronger than Kakashi, so…" As the snake Sannin said this, Kabuto sweated heavily as he got nervous "Heh… I'm joking… now… you may go! I'm putting my trust in you…" Kabuto then smirked slightly before shunshining away as Orochimaru thought _'Heh… that face… I wonder what he's thinking…'_

Forest of Death, tower, arena

"As I mentioned earlier, you will conduct your final round matches in front of everyone. Each of you represents the battle strengths of your respective lands… so we want you to exhibit and fully showcase your various talents. And thus the finals… will commence one month from now!" Hiruzen said.

"We're not doing it right here, right now?" Naruto asked.

"We call this the requisite preparation period…" Hiruzen said.

"What do you mean?" Fu asked.

"Well… it's a period of time that allows us to relay the results of the preliminaries to the rulers and shinobi leaders of each land… and to summon them to the finals… and it also serves as a preparation period for you applicants." Hiruzen said.

"I still don't get it. What do you mean?" Kurotsuchi asked.

"You must prepare to understand your enemy and understand yourself. During this period, you can analyze the intelligence you have gathered on your foes during the preliminaries… and use it to increase your chances of victory. Even though – up to this point – all the battles have been real battles… you were conducted on the premise that you were fighting an "unknown enemy"…" Hiruzen said.

_'… Well, yeah…! I never dreamed that this guy would use sand as a weapon…'_ Shikamaru thought as he stared towards Gaara from the corner of his eyes.

"However, the finals are a different story… some of you probably ended up exposing everything you've got in front of your rivals… and some of you may have gone up against comparatively strong opponents and found yourselves badly injured. In order to make the finals fair and just, we give you this month. Each of you must embrace the opportunity to practice hard, learn some new tricks… and of course get some rest, as well!" Hiruzen said.

Konoha, hospital

There were three dead ANBU operatives lying there on the floor as Kabuto walked towards the bed that Sasuke lay in as he sighed.

"An excess of brilliance can be a disadvantage… we stood out too much. I wonder if catching Orochimaru-sama's eye will mean ruin for both of us…" He said before thinking 'He's so young… how could he have this demon dwelling in his heart? It will serve HIS purpose nicely… when he eventually uses that jutsu to make this kid into…'

Konoha, Orochimaru

_'Kabuto… perhaps you really will… kill Sasuke-kun, after all…'_ Orochimaru thought.

Konoha, hospital

Kabuto took out a scalpel and brought it closer towards Sasuke's neck before he suddenly threw it towards something – or someone – behind him.

"Only you, Kakashi… would think to stop my attack from my blind-spot…" He said after Kakashi had caught the scalpel.

"You… you're no ordinary Genin, are you…? You made your attack immediately upon noticing my presence… you're pretty impressive." Kakashi said.

"No… I'm not so great…" Kabuto said.

"What do you want with Sasuke? Depending on the circumstances… I'll have to arrest and interrogate you." Kakashi said.

"I wonder if you can…?" Kabuto said as he turned around to face the masked Jonin "… Someone like you…?"

"You want to test "someone like me"…?" Kakashi asked before saying "What are you?"

_'Every single one of the ANBU soldiers I had gathered… he slaughtered them all… and with such ease!'_ The masked Jonin thought before saying "You're… the son of… a Konoha medic, right? A perpetual failure of a ninja… your name is… Kabuto, yes?"

"… Next time, you should probably ready… at least 10 guards." Kabuto said.

"Just shut up and answer my questions." Kakashi said.

"And what if I refuse?" Kabuto asked.

"I'm the one asking the questions here… show some respect. Are you… in league with Orochimaru?" Kakashi asked and Kabuto smirked.

"If you arrest me here, right now, you might never be able to prove my connection to Orochimaru. No matter what kind of torture Genjutsu you inflict upon me, I won't spill a single secret… and besides, I don't really like confrontations. It'll all come out eventually, so… why don't you just let it go for now?" Kabuto said.

"You… you're just a selfish little brat, aren't you…? You shouldn't mock your superiors." Kakashi said as he pulled out a kunai.

"You won't just release me, then?" Kabuto asked as he pulled out a knife.

"You know the laws of this village… how spies are dealt with." Kakashi said.

"You're acting awfully smug, considering… that the circumstances are in my favor…" Kabuto said before he held the knife over Sasuke's neck.

Kabuto then thrusted the knife downwards, but Kakashi reacted quickly and appeared next to him before he struck the Oto-nin's knife out of his hand while grabbing the spy's right leg and kicking him in the back so that he fell down on the floor. Then one of the "dead" ANBU suddenly rose up and ran for the door.

_'Oh… aha!_' Kakashi thought before the "ANBU" noticed a second Kakashi standing on the other side of the door.

"A Kage Bunshin!" The "ANBU" said before he stopped and looked from Kakashi to Kakashi, before a second "ANBU" suddenly rose up and threw several kunais at the window before jumping through it, and Kakashi ran over to the window and looked down to see the "ANBU" remove his mask to reveal that it was Kabuto.

_'Darn it… he got away…' _Kakashi thought before he turned around to see the dead ANBU fall back down to the floor as the Kage Bunshin puffed out of existence "Amazing…" He then walked over to the body of "Kabuto" and knelt down to see scar-like marks on his neck and he thought _'Just as I thought… Shikon no Jutsu, used to temporarily restore a cadaver's heart beat and manipulate the corpse… he surgically altered the face… to make it resemble his own…! I'm amazed… he was so thorough in his deception that he even erased the dead body's odor… and he stilled his own heartbeat… disguising himself as one of the ANBU operatives he had killed… to allow his escape. The influence of his adoptive father – the chief of the medical corps – is obvious… in the way he enjoys trifling with corpses… his moves would put even the undertaker squad to shame… if such a talented person is working under Orochimaru, then…'_ "At this rate, I'll be obsolete soon, too…"

Forest of Death, tower, arena

"So… those are the basics. I would like to let all go now, but first… there's one last thing we must do for the finals." Hiruzen said.

"Hey, come on! I need to start training now!" Naruto yelled.

"Now then, don't be so impatient… there are slips of paper inside the box Anko is holding… each of you, take one." Hiruzen said.

"I'll come around, so line up, okay?" Anko said. **(Kurama no Kyubi: Um… Anko, they're already lined up!)**

She then walked over to Sakura who then put his hand into the box while Anko said "One per person!" After Sakura had taken up one of the paper slips, Anko went over to Naruto, then Kurotsuchi, Akatsuchi, Temari, Kankuro, Gaara, Fu, Shibuki, Takimaru, Shikamaru and finally Neji.

"All right… does everybody have one now…? Then… starting at the left, each of you read out the number written on your slip!" Hiruzen said as Ibiki prepared to write down their names on a small score-board that he was holding.

"I've got 5." Sakura said.

"I got 1." Naruto said.

"I got 3." Kurotsuchi said.

"I have 7." Akatsuchi said.

"10." Temari said.

"8" Kankuro said.

"12." Gaara said.

"4." Fu said.

"6." Shibuki said.

"13." Takimaru said.

"9." Shikamaru said.

"2." Neji said.

"So Uchiha will be number 11…" Ibiki said.

"Good! And now I will reveal… the match order for the tournament-style finals!" Hiruzen said.

"So that's what the drawing was for?" Kurotsuchi said.

"Well, Ibiki, show them the pairings." Hiruzen said.

"Yes sir…" Ibiki said before he showed the Genin the score-board.

First it was Naruto vs Neji, next Kurotsuchi vs Fu, then it was Sakura vs Shibuki, afterwards it'd be Akatsuchi vs Kankuro, then Shikamaru vs Temari, and finally Sasuke vs Gaara with Takimaru facing the winner.

'_Man, I've got to fight either Uchiha or the sand freak.'_ Takimaru thought.

_'What? The finals are a simple tournament…?'_ Temari thought.

'_Dammit! I was hoping to fight either Sasuke or Naruto-kun. But instead I'm up against a Jinchuriki.'_ Kurotsuchi thought. **(Kurama no Kyubi: I wonder what she'd say if she found out that Naruto was a Jinchuriki.)**

'_I'm gonna have to fight a girl? … Again?'_ Shikamaru thought.

'_Looks like my second match will be against Naruto-kyu.'_ Fu thought, completely confident that Naruto will win his battle.

'_Sigh… I'm in a different bracket than Gaara… thank goodness.'_ Kankuro thought.

'_The puppet guy, huh?'_ Akatsuchi thought.

_'Uchiha… Sasuke…'_ Gaara thought.

'_Sasuke-kun… against that guy...'_ Sakura thought.

_'… Perfect.' _Neji thought, believing that it'd be an easy battle.

'_My second match is against either the Doton user or the puppet user.'_ Shibuki thought, not believing that Sakura will be much of a challenge.

_'Hyuga Neji, right of the bat? I never dreamed of a better opponent!'_ Naruto thought.

"Now then… it's time for you to go plan your strategies, rest up, or whatever you please. We're all finished here… unless any of you have questions?" Hiruzen said and Takimaru raised his hand.

"May I?" He asked.

"Sure!" Hiruzen said.

"You said this is a tournament, so… there's only one winner, right…? Then… does that mean only one person gets to become a Chunin?" Takimaru asked.

"No! That's not the case. For the finals, you will be observed by many judges… not only me, but… the Kazekage and the rulers and shinobi leaders of countries that will be requesting missions, as well. Based on your performance in the tournament, those judges will assign you an absolute value… and all those who are deemed to have sufficient ability to be a Chunin… even those who may have lost in the first round can become Chunin." Hiruzen explained.

"Do you mean… it's possible that all of us here could become Chunin?" Temari asked.

"Hai. However it is also possible… that none of you will become Chunin! The advantage of fighting in more rounds in the tournament is in having a greater number of opportunities to display your talents for the judges. Does that answer your question, Takimaru?" Hiruzen said.

_'Man, he didn't have to throw it back in my face…' _Takimaru thought.

"Well then, good work, all! You are dismissed until one month from now!" Hiruzen said.

_'My second round will be against either Kuro-chan or Fu…?'_ Naruto thought before he looked towards Fu while thinking _'She's got more control of her Biju than I have of mine… I'd better ask Kakashi-sensei for help.'_ He then looked up to the upper gallery to see that Kakashi wasn't there any longer "Hey. Where'd Kakashi-sensei go?" He then turned to Sakura "Did you see where he went, Sakura-chan?"

"No. I didn't even know he'd left." Sakura said and Naruto looked at Kurotsuchi.

"You wouldn't happen to know where he went, would you?" He asked.

"Sorry." Kurotsuchi said before looking up towards her father "Tou-san, did you see where the masked cyclops went?"

"No, but I'd bet he's probably with the Uchiha." Kitsuchi replied.

"Thanks, jiji." Naruto said before running off.

"Uh… Jiji?" Kitsuchi said as Kurotsuchi chuckled at her dad's misfortune.

Konoha Hospital

"Hey. Where's Sasuke's hospital room?" Naruto asked as he stood in front of a desk in the hospital.

"Visiting hours are over." A Medic behind the desk said.

"But... why?" Naruto asked.

"Sorry… hospital policy." Another medic said.

"Naruto, you're in a hospital! Be quiet!" Kakashi said as he came out of a corridor and Naruto turned around.

"Oh! Kakashi-sensei! Hey! I need a favor!" Naruto said as he walked towards his sensei.

"Stop right there… I already know what you're about to ask, so… I've found someone to oversee your training." Kakashi said.

"Huh? Is it Zabuza-sensei, but I want you to train me, Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto said.

"No, it's not Zabuza. And I've got other things going on… I couldn't give you my full attention. Besides, the one I've found is even stronger than I am." Kakashi said.

"Stronger than you are, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto said excitedly, wondering who could be stronger than the masked Jonin.

"That's right." Kakashi said with an eye-smile.

"Who is it?" Naruto asked.

"So, you're the one with _that_ power." Naruto turned around to see a man that appeared to be in his early fifties and with long white hair.

"It's been a while, Jiraiya-sama." Kakashi said.

Chapter preview

Naruto "So you're the one who trained a Rinnegan bearer during the second great shinobi war? How many eye techniques did you find out about?"

Jiraiya "Practically none."

Naruto "What? But you trained with him for years!"

Jiraiya "There is however a jutsu that I'm sure you'd love to learn… It's called Rasengan!"

Naruto "Next time on Naruto: Rinnegan Jinchuriki: One month training."

Fu "What would you say if I told you that your precious Naruto-kun is a Jinchuriki as well?" (Kurotsuchi's eyes widens)

Character status

Naruto: Power level: 30

Techniques: Henge, Kawarimi, Oiroke, Harem, Kage Bunshin, Suiton: Suiryudan, Doton: Moguragakure, Futon: Kamikaze, Futon: Fujin, Hyoton: Sensatsu Suisho, Rinnegan: Killing-Intent.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Kekkei Genkai: Rinnegan, Hyoton.

Sasuke: Power level: 30

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi, Shishirendan, Katon: Goukakyo, Katon: Housenka, Katon: Ryuka.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Kekkei Genkai: Sharingan.

Sakura: Power level: 15

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken, senbon.

Kurotsuchi: Power level: 30

Techniques: Katon: Ryuka, Suiton: Mizurappa, Doton: Doryuso, Earth style: Earth dome, Yoton: Sekkaigyo.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken, sword.

Kekkei Genkai: Yoton.

Akatsuchi: Power level: 25

Techniques: Doton: Doryuheki, Doton: Goremu.

Weapons: none

Bakutsuchi: Power level: 20

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi.

Weapons: kunai, bombs.

Kekkei Genkai: unknown (not unlocked yet).

Rock Lee: Power level: 30

Techniques: Konoha Senpou, Kagebuyo, Konoha Reppu, Konoha Daisenpu, Omote Renge, Ura Renge.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Neji: Power level: 35

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi, Juken.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Kekkei Genkai: Byakugan.

Tenten: Power level: 25

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi, Soshoryu.

Weapons: too many to count.

Kiba: Power level: 30

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi, Shikyaku, Jujin Bunshin, Tsuuga, Gatsuuga.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Hinata: Power level: 20

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi, Juken.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Kekkei Genkai: Byakugan.

Shino: Power level: 25

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi, Kikaichu, Mushi Bunshin, Mushi Kame, Tetsuzanko, Hijutsu: Mushiyose, Hijutsu: Mushidama.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Shikamaru: Power level: 17

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi, Kagemane, Ino-Shika-Cho.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Choji: Power level: 20

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi, Baika, Nikudan sensha, Ino-Shika-Cho.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Ino: Power level: 15

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi, Shintenshin, Ino-Shika-Cho.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Fu: Power level: 30

Techniques: Mizu Bunshin, Mushi Bunshin, Takigakure-Ryu: Mizukiri no Yaiba, Mushikui, Hijutsu: Rinpungakure.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Shibuki: Power level: 27

Techniques: Mizu Bunshin, Takigakure-Ryu: Mizukiri no Yaiba, Mizu no Tatsumaki.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Takimaru: Power level: 27

Techniques: Mizu Bunshin, Takigakure-Ryu: Mizukiri no Yaiba, Akagan: Iryujonmisuto.

Weapons: kunai, shuriken.

Kekkei Genkai: Akagan.

Dosu: Power level: 35

Techniques: Bunshin, Henge, Kawarimi, Kyomeisen.

Weapons: melody arm.

Zaku: Power level: 30

Techniques: Zankuha, Zankukyokuha.

Weapons: none

Kin: Power level: 30

Techniques: none

Weapons: senbon.

Gaara: Power level: 40

Techniques: Daisan no Me, Suna Bunshin, Suna no Yoroi, Suna no Tate, Suna Shuriken, Sabakukyu.

Weapons: none

Kankuro: Power level: 30

Techniques: Chakura no Ito, Kugutsu.

Weapons: Crow.

Temari: Power level: 30

Techniques: Kamaitachi.

Weapons: fan.

**Kurama no Kyubi:** I'm finally done with the chapter, though I'm afraid I won't be continuing for a while. Now I'm going to be writing on my Naruto/Digimon fic, Naruto: Shinobi Hunters till the end of the year and after that, I'll continue on Naruto's Blue Dragon. Also I thought I should let you guys know that on the day after tomorrow, on the 23rd of December is my birthday. Also as you all know today is the supposed end of the world, so, have a happy doomsday everyone.


End file.
